March 10, 2023

Source: Des Moines Register

A startup with ties to Alliant Energy said it’s building a plant near Cedar Rapids that will recycle decommissioned wind turbine blades, preventing the spent equipment from going into landfills and addressing critics’ challenges that wind energy is environmentally friendly.

Travero, an Alliant subsidiary, is spinning off a new business called REGEN Fiber. The startup announced Thursday it’s building a plant in Fairfax that will convert used wind turbine blades into reusable materials that increase the strength and durability of concrete, mortar and other products.

REGEN Fiber said it has a patent pending for an “eco-friendly process” that it piloted last year at a facility in Des Moines.

Read more: A startup with ties to Alliant is building a wind blade recycling plant