by Russel
Frog Blog
Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas reported a 19% surge in revenue in the second quarter to one billion euros. It shipped 629 turbines in the quarter with a combined output of about 1000MW. It has a backlog of orders for about 4500 MW. Imagine if we had invested in a wind industry 20 years ago.
An interesting aspect is that despite all the expansion they are closing their Australian factory making turbine blades because it is too small and because demand in Australia is insufficient. It seems Howard’s longstanding hostility to renewable energy has undermined Australia’s chance to be part of the global expansion in wind technology.
Another interesting angle is that they are warning about the costs of warranties being exercised. From what I’ve heard this is certainly the case in Manawatu with a number of the turbines having their gearboxes replaced because the wind is pretty strong up that way and causing trouble for the Vestas.
