 | | Joint-free IntegralBlade technology |
Siemens will invest EUR60 million in a new wind turbine factory in Lingang New City, Shanghai, producing 2.3MW and 3.6MW advanced wind rotors and nacelles for the domestic Chinese market and export.
The facility will have a planned capacity of 500MW per year, although Siemens says it has already reserved land in Lingang for potential expansion of the 180,000sq m, 400-employee plant.
“China could soon become the largest wind energy market in the world,” said Wolfgang Dehen, CEO of Siemens Energy Sector and member of the managing board of Siemens AG, at the foundation-stone ceremony in Shanghai last week. Globally, wind turbine plants are a key part of Siemens business, earning revenues of nearly EUR19 billion in fiscal 2008, roughly a quarter of Siemens total revenues.
“We are rigorously advancing the internationalization of our manufacturing network for wind turbines to optimally meet the needs of our customers in Asia, Europe and America,” added Dehen.
Siemens is employing its patented IntegralBlade process for blade production, a technique which forms gigantic 100 tonne, 51-metre blades in one piece without the use of any glued joints, making the blades less susceptible to damage. The 2.3MW machine has a swept area of 8,000 sq m - the size of the blades makes them idea for lower wind speed applications.
The first blades and nacelles are scheduled to leave the plant in time for the May-October Shanghai Expo 2010.
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