USA - Vestas to build world's largest wind turbine in Colorado

Vestas Wind Systems announces its intent to build the world's largest wind turbine tower factory in Colorado.

The announcement came though its first quarter financial report, posted on its Web site. Company officials, however would not discuss whether the plant will join its current facility in Windsor in the Great Western Industrial Park.

Windsor town manger Kelly Arnold could not comment on the matter.

Craig Cox, executive director of Interwest Energy Alliance in Denver, which represents Vestas along with other wind companies, said Vestas remains tight-lipped about the actual location of the plant. He said they are possibly waiting until the annual wind conference next month in Houston to add the final location to its announcement.

Cox said Gov. Bill Ritter's leadership in the push for more renewable energy in the state continues to make Colorado the leader in wind power.

"It shows that they must be pleased with the plant and the reception they've gotten in Windsor," Cox said.

Amendment 37 required the state's largest utility companies to produce 10 percent of their energy from renewable sources by 2015. A subsequent legislative action doubled that to 20 percent by 2020.

"Gov. Ritter has brought new energy to the forefront," Cox said.

The near $250 million tower production facility is expected to be fully operation in mid-2010 with an annual processing capacity of 200,000 tons of steel, or 900 towers, and bring 400 new jobs to the state. Vestas also plans to establish a research and development center in the United States in 2009.

Earlier this year, Vestas opened its first American blade manufacturing facility in Windsor's Great Western Industrial Park. That $65 million, 350,000 square-foot facility, will produce more than 500, 40-meter wind turbines a year when the plant is fully operational, according to company officials.

This is the second big announcement for Vestas since first announcing its intentions to build the blade facility here last year. Originally, the company planned to employ 450 people at full capacity. But an expansion announced late in 2007 added an additional 250 jobs.

The financial report stated the company decided to open the plant in Colorado despite an American policy on wind power that is a "highly short-term approach" to federal energy taxes.

"With 25 states in the USA already having adopted targets for renewable energy's proportion of the local energy mix, Vestas is, however, confident that the USA will henceforth pursue a more long-term energy policy," the report said. "The tower facility investment, which underlines Vestas' belief in a robust US growth market, is expected, along with national legislative measures, soon to convince more European sub-suppliers to come to the USA where they can join forces with Vestas to support the wind power investments made by North American customers."

The volatile policy that sets the tax breaks on renewable energy can change every one or two years, something that makes the Vestas announcement even more exciting, Cox said.

"America needs long-term federal tax certainty," Cox said. "You can't grow an industry when you don't know if you're going to have tax policy in place in 18 months. But these Vestas plants testify to Ritter's leadership for new energy." This story was modified on May 9 to reflect the following correction: The passage of Amendment 37, which required the state’s largest utility companies to produce 10 percent of their energy from renewable sources by 2015, was prior to the election of Gov. Bill Ritter. A quote in a story on page A1 of the Friday edition of the Tribune implied the passage was a result of Ritter’s leadership