Wind Energy Planning

Wind Turbine Manufacturer Share Prices Fall

The BBC reported this week that shares in leading wind turbine manufacturer Vestas have slumped this year.

The company suffered net losses of 119m euros in the second quarter, down from a profit of 43m euros one year ago according to the BBC.

Vestas expects a substantial new wind farm contract in China to help soften the blow of postponed orders in Europe and the US.

Spanish wind turbine manufacturer Gamesa also experienced a drop in share price on Wednesday.

Vestas Open Wind Turbine Office in South Africa

Wind turbine manufacturer Vestas opened a new office in South Africa yesterday to support its expected future expansion in the region. The company has been active in the country for a number of years and says the new office has been opened in recognition of the bright future for wind energy in the region in the longer term.

Using Social Media for Wind Energy Projects

People and companies are realising the potential opportunities offered by social networking sites when promoting or consulting on new projects according to PlanningBlog.

Mark Wilding asked planners what they thought of using social media as a tool for planning application consultation and although a note of caution was urged with regard to the ability of these tools to contain detail, most respondents agreed there is great potential to engage people who do not usually get involved with planning issues. That is, if IT managers would lift restrictions on the use of social network sites (particularly common within local authorities and large companies).

Two examples of social network sites currently dedicated to wind energy are the facebook sites “Yes to Wind Turbines at Spaldington & Holme on Spalding Moor” and “I want a wind farm in my back yard because I’m not an idiot”.

The former is an example of a dedicated project support group set up by the neighbour of two proposed wind farms near Spaldington – the membership is now up to 144. There are links to the project websites and information about who members can e-mail and write to in order to express their views. The latter sprung up further to the closure of the Vestas wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight and now has over 36,500 members. This membership reflects numerous public opinion surveys which time after time demonstrate that although not shouting the loudest, the majority of people support wind energy.

MP Says We Don’t Want Wind Turbines Near our Homes

An English MP wants a new rule to say wind turbines can’t be built within 1.5 miles of homes. This would mean saying goodbye to new wind farms in the English countryside.

Peter Luff MP will tomorrow table a ten minute rule bill asking for an arbritrary 2km buffer zone between wind turbines and homes. This would mean a halt to new wind farms in England which is struggling to meet its renewable energy targets, and many parts of Scotland and Wales.

Ten minute rule bills are often used by MPs to provoke a debate and although unlikely to be successful- an arbritrary 2 km limit would bring about a collapse in the entire English onshore wind industry. This in turn would also probably cause some damage to the offshore wind energy sector as England is seen increasingly by wind turbine manufacturers (like Vestas on the Isle of Wight) as anti-wind. Attempts to kick off small or community led renewable energy projects would be much harder without the support of a healthy renewables industry.

Wind Turbine Company Court Hearing Adjourned

A wind turbine company whose staff are currently illegally occupying a factory failed to secure permission to remove the workers today.

Between 13 and 25 workers are involved in the demonstration at the Vestas factory on the Isle of White which is now into its 9th day. The protest is against the closure of the factory by Danish company Vestas who blame low demand for wind turbines in the UK.

Today, the Danish wind turbine manufacturer’s lawyers sought a possession order from Newport County Court to allow them to appoint bailiffs to remove the workers. However because the proper notices had not been served against the 25 occupiers, the hearing has now been adjourned until Tuesday 4 August. The lawyer acting for Vestas admitted that the company had not served individual notices on those who had locked themselves inside the factory. A crowd of 200 attended the court hearing in support of the protestors.