The Hindu Business Line : Suzlon bags 100 MW wind turbine order from China

Mumbai, March 3 Suzlon Energy Ltd on Tuesday announced that it has won an order from China for supplying 100 MW of wind turbine capacity. The company has not disclosed the value of the order, but it is estimated to be over $100 million.

World Bank will finance the order and it has been placed by Inner Mongolia North Longyuan Wind Power Corporation with the company’s China subsidiary, Suzlon Energy (Tianjin) Ltd, the company said in a press release.

Suzlon will have to deliver 80 units of S64 turbine (1.25 MW), in two lots of 50 MW each in FY2010 and FY2011.

The project site is located 120 km north-east of Hohhot, the capital of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China. The turbines will have to function in extreme cold at the site. During winter the temperature reaches as low as minus 30 degrees centigrade. The site has an annual average temperature of minus 2 degrees centigrade.

The site is in close proximity to Suzlon’s existing Datang International Zhuozi site, which is in operation since 2007 with a total of 32 units of S64 turbines.

Holdings, finances

Mr Paulo Soares, CEO of Suzlon Energy (Tianjin), in the release said that “North Longyuan is a joint venture between North Union Power and Longyuan, the leading wind project developer in China. North Union Power is itself a joint venture among some of the largest power developers in China, with Huaneng as its leading shareholder with 51 per cent. This is a group of very well-established players in the Chinese wind industry,” he said.

Mr Soares added that the project is also unique from the perspective of drawing finances from the World Bank, which maintains the highest standards in project selection. This project is one of the key commitments in the wind power business in China made by the World Bank.

Mr Sumant Shina, COO of Suzlon Energy Ltd, said: “China is one of the world’s fastest growing wind energy markets, and we have a long-standing presence in the country with dedicated manufacturing facilities in Tianjin focused on the local market. We expect the Chinese wind market to continue its rapid growth.