Wind to waves: old turbine blade transformed into surfboards

An old wind turbine blade has in a “world first” been turned into high-performance surfboards as the wind industry looks for new ways to recycle what will soon turn into a deluge of decommissioned machinery.

Spanish renewables developer Acciona announced today that it joined forces with Australian pro surfer Josh Kerr to create the world’s first surfboards made from retired blade material.

The blade in question came from Acciona’s Waubra wind farm in the Australian state of Victoria. That 192MW wind farm consists of 128 wind turbines produced by German manufacturer Nordex.

An initial range of ten prototype boards was produced as part of the ‘Turbine Made’ initiative, which Acciona launched last month to explore new ways to use old turbine blades.

“We know that in the next 5 to 10 years countries like Australia will have a large volume of decommissioned wind turbine blades, so we’re acting now to explore new ways to recycle and reuse the material they are built from,” said Acciona global sustainability director Mariola Domenech.

“The creation of a surfboard prototype, developed locally, is an example of how we're reimagining the materials from decommissioned turbine blades and pushing the envelope of innovation when it comes to the circular economy.”

Acciona is also advancing in end-of-life turbine recycling by developing a blade recycling plant in Spain that it said is set to open next year in 2026. The plant will it said create 100 jobs and process up to 6,000 tonnes of material per year.