Wind Power News: News
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They are the products of the organizations or individuals noted and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch.
Vestas directors quit after losses at wind turbine firm
The finance chief of Vestas, the world’s largest maker of wind turbines, has quit and other directors will not be seeking re-election to the board. The upheaval came after Vestas reported a loss about four times greater than analysts had expected. Chief financial officer Henrik Norremark resigned on Tuesday. Chairman Bent Erik Carlsen, deputy chairman Torsten Erik Rasmussen, and director Freddy Frandsen will not stand for re-election, said a statement. Vestas made a loss last year of 166m euros (£138m; . . .
Study finds whales stressed by ocean noise
Feces sniffing dogs and the timing of a national tragedy helped scientists get their proof that the sound of ships is stressing whales out. The research, printed in the Royal Society journal Proceedings B , had already been underway in the Bay of Fundy in Canada in separate forms when al-Qaida terrorists attacked the United States in 2001. The aftermath of the attacks included a decrease in shipping, which led to less underwater background noise. Scientists noticed there was also . . .
Wind purchases to fall in 2012 as Sinovel profits drop
Purchases of wind turbines and other equipment will decline 14 percent this year and won’t surpass 2011 levels for two years, reducing profits at companies including Sinovel Wind Group Co. (601558), according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Capital investment in wind-power assets worldwide will be $69.2 billion in 2012, down from $80.5 billion last year, as oversupply and waning government support in the U.S. and Europe cut demand. Total installations, including onshore and offshore projects, will be 49 gigawatts, said . . .
Wind-turbine fire under investigation
Structure in Altona Wind Park found in flames; cause uncertain ALTONA — A wind turbine in the Altona Wind Park caught fire Saturday evening, but the cause of the blaze is still under investigation. According to a press release from Noble Environmental Power, the company responsible for building the wind turbines dotting the Altona landscape, there was no damage incurred to anything besides the turbine, and there was no risk to people. But that doesn’t mean no one noticed. As . . .
Wind power: Clean energy, dirty business?
Like the oil drilling rig that became an icon of the Industrial Age, the giant, spinning wind turbine has become a global image of clean power. No longer a futuristic dream of environmentalists, wind power has become a big business: Since the signing of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change in 1998, wind-generated electricity has grown 20-fold: from only enough to power the equivalent of two New York Cities, to 200,000 megawatts today – enough to power six Britains. (In . . .
Overcapacity hits wind turbine market
The world’s largest wind turbine manufacturer is laying off employees due to over capacity in the market from competition from Chinese suppliers and lower demand in European and U.S. markets as unsustainable subsidies decline. Strong headwinds are blowing against the industry as governments have been forced to reduce the overly generous subsidies they have provided to wind producers. Vestas Wind Systems, a Danish firm, plans on closing one of its 26 factories and laying off 2,335 workers, about 10 percent . . .
Renewables to play small role in 2030 energy: BP
Energy produced by wind, solar and other renewable sources will grow by fourfold by 2030, but the clean-energy sector will account for only a small fraction of total output, a BP report said on Wednesday. Renewable energy, excluding hydropower, will total 860 million metric tons of oil equivalent (Mtoe) by 2030, accounting for around 5 percent of the world’s total energy production of 16,605 Mtoe. In 2010, renewable energy production totaled nearly 159 Mtoe or just over 1 percent of . . .
Renewable-energy misery spreads to Vestas, as the Danish wind turbine maker slashes jobs, some in Portland
Turbulence in the renewable-energy industry buffeted Vestas on Thursday, as the Danish wind-turbine maker announced plans for 2,335 layoffs, including some at its U.S. headquarters in Portland. Vestas Wind Systems will cut about a tenth of its worldwide work force, slashing costs by $190 million before year’s end. Layoffs will include 182 in the United States and Canada, including an undetermined number in Portland, where Vestas is a subsidized star in the city’s green galaxy. Managers said another 1,600 Colorado . . .
Vestas CEO: we have a ‘credibility problem’
On the heels of its lackluster financial forecasts and revised financial earnings, Danish wind turbine giant Vestas has announced a massive wave of layoffs and a major corporate restructuring designed to protect the company from further damage. The news was expected, and some analysts had speculated that the company’s CEO, Ditlev Engel, would be ousted from his top spot. Engel will remain at the helm, but the company will lay off 2,335 employees globally – Vestas’ third round of layoffs . . .
Vestas cuts 2,335 jobs, more at risk in U.S.
Vestas Wind Systems A/S (VWS), the world’s biggest wind turbine maker, said it will halt production at one factory and cut 2,335 jobs amounting to 10 percent of its staff as it tries to become more competitive with Chinese suppliers. The changes are aimed at saving more than 150 million euros ($191 million) by the end of 2012, the company based in Aarhus, Denmark, said in a statement today. Vestas said another 1,600 posts in the U.S. are at risk . . .
