Cold Climate Wind: Challenges, Technological Solutions and Policy

Cold-climate wind power represents a major subset of onshore global capacity, with approximately one third of existing installations located in regions prone to low temperatures and icing. The main technical challenge in cold-climate conditions is ice accretion on turbine blades, which degrades aerodynamic performance and causes production losses, while ice falling from turbines poses a significant safety risk. These issues have driven the development of specialized technological solutions, including ice detection and mitigation systems and detailed forecasting models. In parallel, specific policy approaches have also been developed to address increased icing risks. This review focuses on wind turbine blade icing and related issues for onshore wind. It presents state-of-the-art technical solutions for icing-related challenges, as well as approaches for icing modeling and forecasting of icing conditions. In addition, relevant policies from different countries are reviewed. Production losses due to icing are highly variable, influenced by ice thickness, shape, and post-icing wind conditions. Accurate estimation and forecasting of these losses require advanced tools, ranging from SCADA-based analyses to machine learning methods and mesoscale weather prediction models. Ice detection technologies are being developed based on both direct and indirect measurement principles. Efforts to validate and certify these systems for operational use, such as automatically stopping and starting turbines, are ongoing. Icing mitigation includes both active technologies, such as blade heating systems, and passive approaches, such as icephobic coatings. Uncertainty quantification has become central to project financing and planning, with standards emerging to guide risk assessment. Policy and regulatory responses vary internationally: some regions, like Québec, mandate cold-climate certifications and real-time operational data reporting, while others focus on risk assessments and safety zones. Regulatory approaches remain somewhat fragmented and guided by local priorities. Further harmonization is needed to address critical safety issues such as ice throw. 
This article is categorized under: 
Sustainable Energy > Wind Energy 
Policy and Economics > Governance and Regulation