Wind turbine maker Vestas expects ‘very busy’ 2019
Vestas said new orders for wind turbines rose 27 percent last year to a record 14.2 giga-watts of capacity as prices for onshore wind stabilised.
Copenhagen: Wind turbine maker Vestas expects 2019 revenue to come in above last year’s level, the company said on Thursday, as it reported fourth-quarter profit below forecasts.
Vestas said new orders for wind turbines rose 27 percent last year to a record 14.2 giga-watts of capacity as prices for onshore wind stabilised.
Chief executive Anders Runevad said a more stable pricing environment had allowed Vestas to “strengthen the foundation that enables us to execute a very busy 2019”.
The company said it expects revenue of between 10.75 billion euros ($12.2 billion) and 12.25 billion euros this year, up from 10.13 billion last year.
The wind industry has seen falling prices and increased competition as it moves away from governments guaranteeing generous fixed subsidised tariffs for power towards an auction-based system that favours the lowest bidders.
However, Vestas’ main rival Siemens Gamesa, formed by a merger between Spain’s Gamesa and the wind power business of Siemens, is now forecasting better profitability and said last month prices were stabilising,
Vestas’ fourth-quarter operating profit before special items fell 23 percent from a year earlier to 298 million euros, lagging a forecast of 348 million in a Reuters poll of analysts as increased competition pressured margins.
Source: reuters
