Ponferrada plant boosts blade production

The project supports global growing demand and will be developed within 18 months, until the summer of 2020 through gradual implementation of one additional production line during the first quarter of 2019. The new line thus represents additional production to the current operations in the Ponferrada plant. The new production line will follow the same scheme as the current ones, having seven-day work shifts which cover 24 hours, including monthly production stops required for the maintenance of the equipment.

The additional production is time-limited as it responds to an immediate need to meet a peak demand. At this point, it is not expected to continue past 2020.

Ponferrada Plant Director, Francisco Vega, said, “This project shows once again the commitment of LM Wind Power and GE Renewable Energy to Spain in general, and particularly the local communities Castilla y Leon and El Bierzo.”

The increase in the workforce will position LM Wind Power as the largest employer in the area of Bierzo and one of the biggest in the region, contributing close to 1,000 direct jobs.

“It is particularly important,” Francisco highlighted, “that all the employees at the plant continue their daily focus on improving on the key priorities for the company: safety, quality and efficiency. This is the only way we can continue to stand strong when facing the challenges of an increasingly competitive market that pushes hard for lower cost of renewable energy every day.”

The hiring process will kick off this month. The employees that will work on the new production lines will go through the comprehensive five-week induction course in our state-of-the-art training facility, Center of Excellence, before starting to work on the production floor.