A Wind Turbines Dataset for South Africa: OpenStreetMap Data, Deep Learning Based Geo-Coordinate Correction and Capacity Analysis

Accurate and detailed spatial data on wind energy infrastructure is essential for renewable energy planning, grid integration, and system analysis. However, publicly available datasets often suffer from limited spatial accuracy, missing attributes, and inconsistent metadata. To address these challenges, this study presents a harmonized and spatially refined dataset of wind turbines in South Africa, combining OpenStreetMap (OSM) data with high-resolution satellite imagery, deep learning-based coordinate correction, and manual curation. The dataset includes 1487 turbines across 42 wind farms, representing over 3.9 GW of installed capacity as of 2025. Of this, more than 3.6 GW is currently operational. The Geo-Coordinates were validated and corrected using a RetinaNet-based object detection model applied to both Google and Bing satellite imagery. Instead of relying solely on spatial precision, the curation process emphasized attribute completeness and consistency. Through systematic verification and cross-referencing with multiple public sources, the final dataset achieves a high level of attribute completeness and internal consistency across all turbines, including turbine type, rated capacity, and commissioning year. The resulting dataset is the most accurate and comprehensive publicly available dataset on wind turbines in South Africa to date. It provides a robust foundation for spatial analysis, energy modeling, and policy assessment related to wind energy development. The dataset is publicly available.

Publication Details

Journal
Universitätsbibliothek Kassel
Published
2025-06-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.17170/kobra-2025112011660
Primary Topic
Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

A Wind Turbines Dataset for South Africa: OpenStreetMap Data, Deep Learning Based Geo-Coordinate Correction and Capacity Analysis

Universitätsbibliothek Kassel
Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy
article

A Wind Turbines Dataset for South Africa: OpenStreetMap Data, Deep Learning Based Geo-Coordinate Correction and Capacity Analysis

article en

Abstract

Accurate and detailed spatial data on wind energy infrastructure is essential for renewable energy planning, grid integration, and system analysis. However, publicly available datasets often suffer from limited spatial accuracy, missing attributes, and inconsistent metadata. To address these challenges, this study presents a harmonized and spatially refined dataset of wind turbines in South Africa, combining OpenStreetMap (OSM) data with high-resolution satellite imagery, deep learning-based coordinate correction, and manual curation. The dataset includes 1487 turbines across 42 wind farms, representing over 3.9 GW of installed capacity as of 2025. Of this, more than 3.6 GW is currently operational. The Geo-Coordinates were validated and corrected using a RetinaNet-based object detection model applied to both Google and Bing satellite imagery. Instead of relying solely on spatial precision, the curation process emphasized attribute completeness and consistency. Through systematic verification and cross-referencing with multiple public sources, the final dataset achieves a high level of attribute completeness and internal consistency across all turbines, including turbine type, rated capacity, and commissioning year. The resulting dataset is the most accurate and comprehensive publicly available dataset on wind turbines in South Africa to date. It provides a robust foundation for spatial analysis, energy modeling, and policy assessment related to wind energy development. The dataset is publicly available.

Universitätsbibliothek Kassel
Affordable and clean energy
Openalex Percentile: Top 32%
Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy
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