Global wind power industry recovers thanks to repowering maintenance

WIND ENERGY

Global wind power industry recovers thanks to repowering maintenance

Greentech Lead U.K: Global wind power industry made a
strong recovery from financial crisis in 2011, helped by the extensive work
demanded by sites due for repowering maintenance, according to GlobalData.

The global wind repowering market in 2011 was primarily
dominated by Denmark, Germany, the US and India.

Denmark was the largest wind repowered market with an
estimated 213.1 MW, accounting for around 51.6 percent of the total global
repowered capacity while Germany, the second largest wind repowered market in
2011, forms around 43.1 percent of the global repowered capacity, according to
GlobalData.

The value of the global wind repowering market has
increased significantly during the last five years. In 2006, an estimated
capacity of 201.6 megawatts (MW) was repowered. Since this time, repowered
capacity had increased to 417.4 MW in 2011.

Still, this explored capacity represents only around 22
percent of the total global repowering potential in 2011, it is estimated that
repowering potential is estimated to exceed 44,000 MW by 2020.

Installed wind capacity is set to increase as wind power
markets are expected to witness massive growth in multiple regions, following a
temporary decline caused by the global recession, a new report by market
intelligence experts the authors have found.

The historic pattern of wind power installations
predicts an enormous surge in the repowering industry within the next five
years, and the market is anticipated to experience a whirlwind of activity.

While global installed wind energy capacity increased
dramatically during 2006-2009, the global recession sparked a 13.8 percent fall
in annual additions during 2010, when major wind markets, including the US,
Germany and Spain, faced economic struggles as a result of the global
recession.

However, these markets are soon expected to recover
thanks to a huge order intake by major wind manufacturers across emerging
regions. Wind power manufacturers worldwide received a high order intake in
2010, with expected delivery deadlines in 2011 and 2012, contributing to the
large total of annual installations expected this year.

In 2011, wind farms producing around 170.1 GWh of power
were replaced with turbines capable of generating 723.9 GWh of power. In 2020,
the repowered wind farms are expected to increase their power generation to
14,532.3 GWh due to the higher capacity and efficiency of the new turbines, the
report said.

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