German Repower expects more U.S. wind deals
German wind turbine maker Repower is considering setting up a U.S. subsidiary to tap the fast-growing market and expects further U.S. deals in the next two years, its chief executive said on Tuesday.
“We have got subsidiaries all over the world except the United States. We are currently looking into the possibility of setting one up there. We need to be represented in the United States,” Fritz Vahrenholt told Reuters.
U.S. President George W. Bush said earlier this year the United States should reduce its reliance on foreign oil by developing alternative energy sources and has said 20 percent of its electricity should come from wind energy.
Repower, which supplied about 300 megawatts of generators in 2005, entered the U.S. market in June after signing a deal with EDF’s (EDF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) unit Inxco to supply 56 wind turbines with a capacity of two megawatts each.
“We expect to sign further deals with big U.S. utilities in the next two years,” said a Repower spokesman.
Repower did not give further details about possible projects, but said in general, projects in the United States were often about the same size as its first U.S. deal.
To meet rising demand in wind turbines, the company is planning to invest about 30 million euros ($39.4 million) in the next two years to build two new production plants, one rotor blade production plant in Portugal and a turbine production site in northern Germany.
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Tags: Wind power, Wind energy
