WORLD CHAMPION IN WIND POWER

ENERGY: The Indian government has set the objective that 10% of all electricity production must come from renewable energy sources by 2012. Today in Denmark, wind power already accounts for twice that figure. Denmark is also home to the world’s largest wind turbine manufacturer and the world’s largest manufacturer of blades.

Denmark utilises wind power more than any other country in the world. 20% of Danish electricity consumption is generated by wind turbines spread across the whole country. Since the mid 1970s, the wind power industry in Denmark has become an important player in Danish industry and a major contributor to exports. Vestas Wind Systems, the world’s largest wind turbine manufacturer, is Danish. Siemens Wind Power is based in Denmark and the world’s largest manufacturer of blades for wind turbines, LM Glasfiber, is also Danish.

LM Glasfiber, which additionally has production in Bangalore in India, is the only blade manufacturer that operates globally.

Blades play a vital role in wind turbines –their design is crucial to the efficient exploitation of energy from the wind. LM Glasfiber has produced and sold more than 84,000 blades since 1978, corresponding to a capacity of 19,860 MW, or the annual electricity consumption of approx. 19 million European households.

Local production

LM Glasfiber has local production in growth markets to ensure progress on the global market. In 2004, the company expanded its capacity in Asia alone by 50% and plans a further 60% expansion by 2006-7.

“Three things about blade production are especially important to customers,” says sales and marketing director Søren Knudsen of LM Glasfiber. “They need to be able to buy locally produced blades of consistent quality, purchase in local currency, and reduce transport costs and investments in working capital. We meet all three demands through local production.”

The Indian market for wind energy has grown by 20% on average every year since 1994, when LM Glasfiber established its first factory in the country. The Indian government has set the objective that renewable energy must account for 10% of the country’s electricity consumption by 2012.

Director Nirmal K. Gupta of LM Glasfiber in Bangalore in India says: “Local production helps to keep prices and thus customers’ costs down, and that is very important in a competitive situation. Our competence level is very high on the Asian market, so although we have progressed so far in small steps, we are ready to play an active role when the wind power market sees a boom in the coming years.”

LM Glasfiber currently has seven factories in five countries in North America, Asia and Europe.

17,500 MW Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems A/S is the world’s largest manufacturer of wind turbines and is represented throughout the world. By the end of 2004, the company had installed wind turbines with a total production capacity of approx. 17,500 MW out of a total capacity of 48,000 MW worldwide. In other words Vestas Wind Systems has a global market share of around 35%. The company has production in Denmark, Germany, India, Italy, Scotland, England, Spain, Sweden, Norway and Australia. The company’s core business areas include development, production, sales and maintenance. Vestas started production of wind turbines in 1979. Today the group employs around 9,500 people.

Unique R&D In parallel with the development of a very strong production environment for wind turbines in Denmark, the country has grown into an international powerhouse for research and development in the area. Denmark’s Risø National Laboratory has set the standard for international research with its Wind Energy Department. The overall objectives of the research are to develop new opportunities and technology for the exploitation of wind energy and to advance the competitiveness of wind energy. The research also aims to further the global application of wind energy and to advance the basic atmospheric physics which is used to calculate the effect of the wind on major constructions and buildings. The research is carried out in cooperation with industry and other endusers, and in close collaboration or alliances with national and foreign universities, research institutions and organisations. The key areas of scientific expertise in the department are boundary layer meteorology, aerodynamics, aeroacoustics, fluid and structural mechanics, electrical design and control, and machine and construction technology. Risø has recently established a commercial centre for testing wind turbine blades. The Blade Test Center tests blades for both Danish and foreign wind turbine manufacturers. The presence of the test centre has led to Spain’s Gamesa and India’s Suzlon establishing development departments in Denmark.