Ecologia, Medio Ambiente y Energias Renovables en la Naturaleza

Wind power giant Vestas Wind Systems A.S. said last year's financial results deviated significantly from what the company expected, as it continues to be more aggressive in the wind energy service category to achieve more profits.

Calling 2011 "a tough year," Vestas recalled that it had to abandon targets, issue profit warnings and lay off employees.

The company recorded an annual revenue of 5.8 billion euros ($7.72 billion), with an operating loss of 38 million euros and an EBIT margin of negative 0.7 percent before special items.

"The results and revenue for the year are substantially lower than the original expectations of an EBIT margin of 7 percent and revenue of 7 billion euros, which is disappointing," the company said in its annual report published on Wednesday.

"[It] was a tough year for Vestas. Not only did Vestas realize its first loss since 2005, but we also had to abandon our Triple15 targets, our share price dropped by 65 per cent and we had to prepare for another round of lay-offs that will affect more than 2,000 skilled and dedicated employees," the company said.

Slow commissioning

Vestas said the huge difference between projected revenue and profit margin with actual results is primarily due to deferred shipments as a result of the delayed commissioning of its new generator factory in Germany.

Poor weather toward the end of 2011 was also a factor according to the company. In Germany, wind speed in December was reportedly 30 to 45 percent higher than the average for the past 10 years, making turbine installations challenging.

Vestas said postponements of project deliveries amounted to about 1.2 billion euros, even as the company was spending significantly on new turbine designs.

Vestas, which has been in the wind power business for 33 years, is actually preparing to reach a milestone 50,000 megawatts in total turbine installations this year.

With global installed turbine capacity near 200 gigawatts, the 50,000 MW figure roughly makes one in every four wind turbines on the planet a Vestas brand.

But the company said that on top of selling turbines, the "new Vestas" announced in early January will grab opportunities in the service business.

"Maintenance and optimization of customers' wind farms have developed into a high-technology product with a great potential. Going forward, the service organization is expected to attract a larger share of total investments, enabling an even faster introduction of new services and solutions to the benefit of customers and Vestas alike," the company stated.

What characterizes this particular segment, Vestas said, is its stable and evenly distributed revenue, allowing the company to be less exposed to financial fluctuations typical in the wind turbine industry.

The company said it expects revenue from the service business to rise to 850 million euros, with an EBIT margin of 14 percent.

Vestas' overall outlook for 2012 is 6.5 billion to 8 billion euros, with a zero to 4 percent profit margin range. Turbine shipments are expected to increase to approx 7 GW.

PTC concerns

Meanwhile, the company said it is preparing for a "significant slowdown" in the United States in case the Production Tax Credit scheme is not extended beyond 2012.

"The [U.S.] has yet to draw up a national energy plan with ambitious climate targets. The lack of such a plan, combined with low gas prices makes for difficult market conditions," the company said.

Vestas said the non-extension of the PTC could result in the lay-off of about 1,600 employees in U.S. factories.(EcoSeed Staff)

http://www.ecoseed.org/ - ECOticias.com