Labor ministry issues wind farm maintenance safety guide after March fire

South Korea's labor ministry said Thursday it has jointly issued a one-page safety guide for wind turbine maintenance and repair work with the climate ministry, a response to a fire at a Yeongdeok wind farm in March that highlighted the hazards of work at height and in confined spaces.

The sheet sets out for workers at five locations on a turbine — the tower base, tower interior, nacelle, blade and hub — an outline of the task, the main hazards, core safety rules and mandatory precautions. It includes a sample job safety analysis for blade maintenance, among the riskiest of the jobs.

At the tower base, the guide calls for electrical checks to be carried out under lockout-tagout procedures, with zero-voltage confirmed and insulating protective equipment worn. Workers climbing inside the tower are told to clip on a harness and lifeline and to check the guards on lifting equipment. Servicing the drivetrain in the nacelle requires the rotor to be fully stopped and the brake engaged. For blade and hub work, the guide requires double lanyards and double ropes, and says work must stop if the weather deteriorates.

The sheet was drawn up after gathering the views of site workers and industry to reflect the conditions of maintenance work, the ministry said.

"Wind power involves many non-routine maintenance and repair tasks on ageing equipment, so it is important to conduct a risk assessment before work begins, identify the hazards and follow the safety rules," said Kim Bu-hee, the labor ministry's industrial safety prevention policy officer. "I hope this OPS will be widely used in the field."

Lee Kyung-soo, renewable energy policy officer at the climate ministry, said a safety-based management system is essential for the sustainable expansion of wind power, and that the government would work with other ministries and the industry to embed the guide at worksites.

The guide is being distributed to 141 wind farms currently in commercial operation as well as to developers, turbine manufacturers and maintenance contractors, and posted on the industrial safety portal and the Korea Wind Energy Industry Association's website.

The two ministries plan to produce and distribute a fuller renewable energy safety work guide covering offshore wind and the installation and dismantling of equipment in November.