Mexico - Vestas receives 50 MW wind farm order

Vestas has received an order for a total capacity of 50.4 MW consisting of 28 units of the V100-1.8 MW turbine for the Los Altos wind power plant, which will be located in Jalisco, Mexico. This is a very important milestone for the Mexican wind industry; Los Altos wind power plant is the first large project to be installed outside the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, where the vast majority of the existing wind power plants in Mexico have been built until now. The order has been placed by REM Regeneración Eléctrica Mexicana S.A. de C.V. - known as GRUPO DRAGON -, a Mexican company established for this purpose.

The contract includes delivery, installation and commissioning of the wind turbines, a VestasOnline® Business SCADA solution, as well as a 10-year service and maintenance AOM 5000 agreement (Active Output Management). The AOM 5000 optimises wind power plant output and minimises customer risk. This service product introduces an energy-based guarantee, which ensures the turbines are fully operational when the wind is blowing. Thus, this service offering provides customers with a higher certainty of energy production and a higher energy output than traditional service offerings with a time-base availability guarantee, leading to more revenue and increased business case certainty.

Delivery of the turbines is expected to start in Q4 2012 and the project is expected to be completed by Q2 2013.

“This is the second order signed with GRUPO DRAGON in Mexico within a short period of time, which shows their trust in Vestas’ technology, products, service solutions and local capabilities. We look forward to a long and valued relationship with them,” says Adrian Katzew Corenstein, General Manager, Vestas Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.

“We are very pleased to build our second wind farm with Vestas and we truly believe the V100-1.8 MW Vestas turbines will provide reliable and affordable renewable energy,” says Luis Montgomery, CEO of GRUPO DRAGON and Jose Pablo Fernandez, COO of GRUPO DRAGON.

Juan Araluce, Chief Sales Officer, Vestas Wind Systems A/S, and Acting President, Vestas Mediterranean, concludes: “We are pleased to announce this new order which confirms our strategy in developing emerging markets with huge wind potential, such as Mexico, while at the same time we contribute to achieving the Mexican Government’s goals in reducing fossil fuel consumption and its level of carbon emissions.”

The wind power plant has an estimated annual production of 180 GWh, which corresponds to annual emission savings of 79,200 tons of CO2 and a residential electricity consumption of around 380,000 persons in Mexico.
About wind power in Mexico

Mexico is committed towards renewable energy sources, and has a non-binding unilateral goal to reduce carbon emissions to 50 per cent of the estimated emission levels in 2002 by 2050. Additionally, in 2010, the Congress approved the National Energy Strategy that the Energy Ministry (SENER) submitted to establish a goal to reduce the share of power generated from fossil fuels to 65 per cent by 2024, 60 per cent by 2030 and 50 per cent by 2050. The goal of increasing the share of clean technologies to 35 per cent will require an additional 7,000 MW of clean generation in addition to the 10,000 MW of clean generation capacity currently planned.
About Vestas

Every single day, Vestas wind turbines deliver clean energy that supports the global fight against climate change. In Q1 2012, the company reached a significant milestone: 50 GW of global installed capacity, amounting to more than 46,000 wind turbines currently reducing carbon emissions by approximately 55 million tons of CO2 every year, while at the same time building energy security and independence. Today, Vestas has installed turbines in 69 countries, and for our own operations alone, we provide jobs for over 20,000 passionate people at our service and project sites, research facilities, factories and offices all over the world.
Vestas in Mexico

Vestas Mexico is the sales unit responsible for the sales, installation and service and maintenance of wind turbines in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. In June 2010, Vestas opened new headquarters for the region in Mexico City. Vestas installed its first wind power plant in Mexico in 1994 and in the past three years, Vestas has signed firm and unconditional orders for a total capacity of more than 530 MW. Vestas has recently been awarded the largest single wind farm in Mexico and in Latin America, the Mareña Project (396 MW). Vestas is developing a local value chain in Mexico contributing to the development of a strong network of local suppliers which can deliver components, products, spare parts and services.

Wind energy in Mexico

2005: 2 MW (- %)
2006: 84 MW (+4100 %)
2007: 85 MW (+1.2 %)
2008: 85 MW (- %)
2009: 202 MW (+137.7 %)
2010: 517 MW (+156 %)
2011: 873 MW (+68.9 %)

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