14 May 2026
European project MERIDIONAL presents case studies on wind energy systems optimisation
PRESS RELEASE
Before the EU-funded project ends in September 2026, the team is sharing its findings and best practices to improve the performance of onshore and offshore wind farms, as well as airborne systems.
“The project was looking at particularly difficult flow situations” said Simon Watson, the project coordinator from TU Delft “We managed to develop models to provide rapid and accurate inflow and load predictions, as well as models to characterise inflow based on airborne measurements”.
In addition, MERIDIONAL has established best practice guidelines for the use of RANS and LES models to assess wind farm performance and loads under unsteady inflow conditions across various environments, including offshore and complex terrain.
Further results include improved wake models for both surface and airborne wind energy systems, alongside a comprehensive modelling framework capable of coupling models of varying fidelity. Extensive validation and benchmarking activities have been carried out using operational data, with model efficacy demonstrated through a range of test cases.
These results were presented during the project’s latest conference, held as part of the WindEurope Annual Event 2026 on 21 April 2026. Organised in collaboration with sister projects AIRE and FLOW, the event marked an important milestone after years of research and testing aimed at optimising wind energy systems.
The event also provided the opportunity to premiere the presentation video of WindLab, a knowledge and data hub created jointly with the two sister projects. This platform is designed to support the wind energy community in assessing performance and loads, fostering collaboration and innovation across the sector. The video is now available online.
In the coming months, MERIDIONAL will continue to disseminate its results through infopacks, video interviews, and recommendations for policymakers. All results are available on the project website and on its Zenodo community.
“We are already looking ahead to ensure the continuation of WindLab beyond the end of the projects and to identify new opportunities to further advance research in this field,” the project coordinator added.
