OEMs may soon begin outsourcing offshore blade supply KARL-ERIK STROMSTA G lobal turbine OEMs that have outsourced a growing portion of their onshore blade production may soon begin doing so for offshore projects as well, TPI Composites chief executive Steve Lockard tells Recharge. Historically the offshore business has been dominated by one or two players who built most all of their blades in house, so it wasnt as target-rich for us [as onshore], Lockard said in an interview on the sidelines of the Global Wind Summit. Were not building offshore blades today, but the opportunity is growing and its becoming more and more interesting. TPI, the worlds leading independent blade maker, has seen rapid growth in recent years as turbine manufacturers have outsourced more of their blade production. TPI operates blade plants in China, Mexico and Turkey in addition to its home market of the US, and a recent deal with Germanys Enercon in Turkey means it now counts the worlds six largest non-Chinese turbine OEMs as customers. The percentage of outsourced blades being used in the global wind market has grown from 30% a few years ago to more than 50% today, Lockard said. Thats happened even as GE has moved much of its blade production in-house through its 2017 acquisition LM Wind Power. And that percentage will continue to rise, Lockard predicted. The same paradigm of outsourced blade production that allows turbine OEMs to enter new onshore markets quickly and without sinking capital into local factories can also apply to offshore, he said. With international markets expanding, the same model can work for offshore. Offshore wind will remain a relatively small fraction of the global wind market, with analyst MAKE forecasting its share at less than 20% in 2027. We dont expect it to be a major percentage of what we do, Lockard said. But within TPIs current prioritised pipeline of deals, Lockard confirmed that a couple in that pipeline would be offshore related. SGRE hiring for 12MW+ turbines Photograph Getty BERND RADOWITZ Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) is hiring engineers in Denmark and India for its planned 12MW-plus offshore wind turbine, the OEMs offshore chief executive Andreas Nauen told Recharge in an interview at the Global Wind Summit. He still couldnt tell when exactly SGRE will launch its super-sized offshore machine, but Nauen said that it would be within a year. The usual cycle, once the company starts hiring people, lasts around half a year, he added, which gives some indication that the process will take a while. Siemens first revealed plans for a 10MW-plus machine in 2015, before its merger with Gamesa, but little has been said about it since. MHI Vestas announced the first 10MW-plus turbine on Tuesday, while rivals GE, Senvion, Goldwind and others are now working on double-digitmegawatt machines, which are expected to cause another round of steep price declines in offshore wind. Engie acquires 500MW of French wind projects Frances Engie has acquired French developer Sameole and its 500MW pipeline of onshore wind projects in the country for an undisclosed amount, building on its recent global renewables acquisition spree. The acquisition of Sameole and its 20-member development team strengthens Engies position in its home market, where it already operates 1.9GW of wind capacity. Engie chief executive Isabelle Kocher Eni to build first large wind farm in Kazakhstan The first utility-scale wind farm in Kazakhstan, a 48MW project, is to be built by Italian oil & has giant Eni, using 3.8MW turbines supplied by GE. The Badashma wind farm will be Enis first significant investment in wind power, while the plant will also be the first in the country to use GE machines. GWEC creates offshore wind advisory taskforce The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) has set up an offshore wind taskforce to advise non-European governments on the benefits of the technology, as well as best practices. The taskforce will be chaired by the UKs Alastair Dutton, with industry pioneer Henrik Steisdal as its first global offshore wind ambassador. ABB to supply WindFloat Atlantic transformers ABB will supply custom-designed transformers for the 8.4MW MHI Vestas turbines to be deployed on the WindFloat Atlantic floating wind project off northern Portugal, being developed by an EDP Renewablesled consortium. The compact 66kV transformers are specifically designed to withstand the additional vibration and movement of a floating project. rechargenews.com 11 OFFICIAL SHOW DAILY Global Wind Summit 2018 Visit us at Stand 318, Hall B7 Visit us at Stand 318, Hall B7 Produced by RECHARGE rechargenews.com Poland to unveil 1GW renewables tender BERND RADOWITZ Photograph Bernd Radowitz P olands energy regulator is expected to announce details of a clos WINDENERGY 2014 RECHARGE OFFICIAL EVENT DAILY ProducedHAMBURG by RECHARGE rechargenews.com BERND RADOWITZ Siemens Gamesas offshore wind boss, Andreas Nauen Photography Siemens Gamesa A fter Taiwan, Japan will be the next big market for offshore wind power in Asia, with projects of at least WINDENERGY 2014 RECHARGE OFFICIAL EVENT DAILY ProducedHAMBURG by RECHARGE rechargenews.com ANDREW LEE A rgentinas renewables programme is well shielded to ride out the economic storm battering the country, claimed the governments renewable energy under-secretary. Argentina seen as one of the Equinors Dudgeon project off the UK New investment in ports could save 5.3% on offshore LCOE CHRISTOPHER HOPSON Equinor and Petrobras to build offshore wind projects in Brazil ANAMARIA DEDULEASA Photograph Equinor B razilian oil group Petrobras and Norways Equinor have signed a memorandum of u L TA GI M DI OR W TF NE PLA AN INVESTMENT IN KNOWLEDGE ALWAYS PAYS THE BEST INTEREST Benjamin Franklin RECHARGE has been reporting from of the renewable energy industry, the front lines of the renewables where only the what is reported, industry on five continents since not the why not the ho Spanish wind sector welcomes energy reforms CHRISTOPHER HOPSON S pains long-suffering wind industry has given a big welcome to major government reforms of the electricity sector, designed to encourage the wider deployment of renewables, while rolling back many of the restrictions imposed by the pr The WindEnergy Hamburg app 2018 Extremely practical: the services offered by the WindEnergy Hamburg App. It helps you to make the ideal preparations for your visit. With exhibition hall plan, and the latest news on the programme. Fri 28 September The free App is available for iPhone, iPod touch, i RECRUITING FORUM UPPER FLOOR BETWEEN HALLS B1 AND B2 10.30 10.55 Arbeiten in der Windbranche. Ihre Karrieremöglichkeiten mit Kelly Services Insa Helmholz, Niederlassungsleiterin Engineering und Standortleiter Hamburg, Kelly Services GmbH 11.00 11.15 Die 7 Todsünden bei der Bewerbung Marcus Bach, F WindEurope 2018 Conference Breaking new ground Friday 28 September PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS The WindEurope 2018 Conference is happening right now! Dont miss out on unparalleled learning and networking opportunities. More than 50 conference sessions and over 500 speakers and presenters will put you at OEMs may soon begin outsourcing offshore blade supply KARL-ERIK STROMSTA G lobal turbine OEMs that have outsourced a growing portion of their onshore blade production may soon begin doing so for offshore projects as well, TPI Composites chief executive Steve Lockard tells Recharge. Historically th 20-21 November Amsterdam Okura Hotel Connecting renewable energy buyers and sellers TOPICS INCLUDE: Corporate sourcing strategies and business models Markets and regulation Demand growth and diversification: How to turn 50 corporates into 50,000? Innovation Standardisation Guarantees of origin Cit Vietnam approves higher FIT for wind Fishermen working near Vietnams first wind farm, the 99.2MW Bac Lieu facility, in the southern province of the same name ANDREW LEE V ietnams government has signed off an increase to the countrys wind power feed-in tariff (FIT), in a bid to spur higher levels WINDENERGY 2014 RECHARGE OFFICIAL EVENT DAILY ProducedHAMBURG by RECHARGE rechargenews.com ANDREW LEE Photography AFP/Getty Nordex S 14 outh Africas renewables sector hopes intensive lobbying can persuade its government to avoid another self-inflicted policy wound, just when it seemed the three years or so. Along with others in the renewables lobby, it hopes the 60-day consultation window that opened after the publication of the draft IRP can be used to Boom and bust procurement can be very damaging to the development of a localised supply chain, SAWEA tells Recharge in a statement. Visit Nexans at IN WIND TURBINE S , YOUR PERFOR M ANCE STARTS WITH C ABLE S Photos credits: Getty WINDENERGY Hamburg 25-28 Sept. BOOTH B6.355 WINDLINK INNOVATIVE CABLE SOLUTIONS AND SERVICES WORLDWIDE. Because you want to supply electrical generation efficiency and not just turbines, we have