Vestas will cease production at three European factories that manufacture components for outdated onshore and offshore wind turbines. It will close sites at Lauchhammer in Germany, Viveiro in Spain and Esbjerg in Denmark, the company announced. The turbine manufacturer employs appriximately 650 people across the three sites.
Vestas will cease production at three European factories that manufacture components for outdated onshore and offshore wind turbines. It will close sites at Lauchhammer in Germany, Viveiro in Spain and Esbjerg in Denmark, the company announced. The turbine manufacturer employs appriximately 650 people across the three sites.
Manufacturer says introduction of new products and integration of onshore and offshore businesses are behind closures
Vestas will cease production at three European factories that manufacture components for outdated onshore and offshore wind turbines.
It will close sites at Lauchhammer in Germany, Viveiro in Spain and Esbjerg in Denmark, the company announced.
The turbine manufacturer employs appriximately 650 people across the three sites. Where required by local law, Vestas will now begin legal proceedings and negotiations with workers’ representatives and local work councils for affected employees, it added.
Vestas produces blades for its V117 and V136 onshore turbines, generators for its 2MW onshore platform, and control panels, …
... more [truncated due to possible copyright]Manufacturer says introduction of new products and integration of onshore and offshore businesses are behind closures
Vestas will cease production at three European factories that manufacture components for outdated onshore and offshore wind turbines.
It will close sites at Lauchhammer in Germany, Viveiro in Spain and Esbjerg in Denmark, the company announced.
The turbine manufacturer employs appriximately 650 people across the three sites. Where required by local law, Vestas will now begin legal proceedings and negotiations with workers’ representatives and local work councils for affected employees, it added.
Vestas produces blades for its V117 and V136 onshore turbines, generators for its 2MW onshore platform, and control panels, and power conversion modules for V164 and V174 offshore turbines at the factories.
It expects to have ended production at the three sites by mid-2022.
“Today’s fast-moving energy transition, rapid introduction of new products and recent integration of our onshore and offshore business require us to further mature and evolve our supply chain network and manufacturing footprint,” said Vestas’ executive vice president and chief operating officer Tommy Rahbek Nielsen.
“While Vestas will sustain a strong footprint in Europe across manufacturing and service activities, it’s always hard to make decisions that negatively affect our hard-working colleagues at Vestas."
The company said it would explore opportunities to relocate workers to other manufacturing and service locations in the countries they're based in.
Nielsen added: “I would like to emphasise that we are deeply committed to explore opportunities to relocate our colleagues, who unfortunately will be impacted by the ceasing of production at our factories in Lauchhammer, Viveiro and Esbjerg.”
Germany
Vestas had scaled down activities at its Lauchhammer factory in Brandenburg state in eastern Germany two years ago. It produces a “limited number” of blades for its V117 and V136 turbines and currently employs about 460 people there.
The manufacturer expects to meet future demand for these turbine models with supply from its other blade factories around the world.
The firm expects to end production at Lauchhammer by the end of 2021.
Spain
Vestas added that it is “no longer sustainable” to continue production at the Viveiro factory in Galicia, north-west Spain, where it produces generators for its 2MW onshore platform and control panels for its V164 offshore turbines.
This is because there has been a decrease in demand for its 2MW turbines, it explained.
The manufacturer currently employs about 115 people at the Viveiro site.
It expects to end production at Viveiro by the end of 2021.
Denmark
Vestas plans to gradually shift production of power conversion modules for its V164 and V174 offshore turbines away from Esbjerg on the west coast of Denmark’s Jutland peninsula.
It expects demand for these components to shift to markets primarily outside of Europe and plans to produce them at more localised manufacturing facilities, it explained.
The manufacturer expects to end production at Esbjerg – where it employs about 75 people – in the first half of 2022.
The financial impact of these closures on Vestas will depend on the outcome of negotiations with work councils and the sale of buildings, the manufacturer explained.