Global power generation company Siemens shook up the wind world on October 20 when it announced it would purchase wind turbine manufacturer Bonus Energy A/S.
Siemens spokesman Dr. Stephan Feldhaus, speaking to the Wind Energy Weekly, said that it is still too soon to make any strategic announcements about the future direction of the company, but he did want to stress that as a global manufacturing company with offices, sales, and communications channels around the world one could expect Siemens to increase Bonus's international presence. The company will be particularly focusing on Europe, the U.S., and Asia. He expects the purchase to be finalized by the end of November.
Feldhaus said that Siemens felt that Bonus is a good acquisition at this time because its technology is well accepted in the market, it enjoys an excellent reputation from its customers, it had "absolutely solid financials and a financial viewpoint similar to Siemens," and a highly motivated workforce. He said that Siemens' experience with large-scale utility projects will be an asset to Bonus as the wind power industry moves more toward bigger projects. In 2003, Bonus captured almost 7% of the world wind turbine market share.
With the merger of NEG Micon and Vestas, it is now the world's fifth largest wind turbine manufacturer. Today, the world market volume for wind energy systems is around ?6 billion ($7.59 billion). Bonus Energy has annual sales of about 300 million euros ($379 million).
The company is staking its claim to be a leading offshore turbine manufacturer, having supplied almost half of the offshore wind power capacity installed around the world. In 1991, Bonus supplied the world's first offshore wind farm, and in 2003 Bonus supplied the world's largest offshore wind farm to date, with a capacity of 166 MW, located at Nysted in Denmark. According to BTM Consult's 2003 World Market Update, large-scale offshore development in Europe and especially Germany is expected to take off in 2007.
In the U.S., Bonus gained less than 1% of the market share in 2003, with the installation of 12 1.3-MW turbines for an expansion project for Energy Northwest. Bonus has installed 263 1.3-MW turbines in the U.S. in the past three years, 214 of them at the King Mountain wind ranch, the second largest wind farm in the U.S.
In addition to an assembly plant at the corporate headquarters in Brande, Denmark, Bonus has its own newly-built rotor blade production facility in Aalborg, Denmark. The company employs about 750 people.
Siemens purchased the power generation unit of Westinghouse in 1998. That purchase has helped the Power Generation group of Siemens to become one of the leading companies in the international power generation sector. In fiscal 2003, Siemens PG posted sales amounting to approximately EUR 7 billion ($8.86 billion). The power generation group has a workforce of more than 30,000 worldwide, including over 8,000 employees in the U.S.
"The market is demanding ever more comprehensive and complex solutions," said Palle Nrgaard, CEO of Bonus Energy. "In the past, we have undertaken significant research and development activities for further advancement of this technology. I believe that becoming the wind power division of Siemens Power Generation, which is the leading power equipment manufacturer in the world, will ensure that we will grow into one of the leaders in the global wind energy industry. Consequently, I'm certain that, together with Siemens, our mutual future in this promising market looks bright."
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