American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC) continues to expand its business in China’s booming wind industry. The company announced a $70 million dollar initial order for full wind turbine electrical control systems from China’s Shenyang Blower Works (Group) Co., Ltd. (SBW).
The systems will be deployed in the 2-megawatt (MW) doubly fed induction wind turbines that were co-developed with AMSC Windtec™, a subsidiary of AMSC. This is the largest initial electrical control system order that AMSC has received to date from any wind turbine customer.
Founded in 1934 and based in Shenyang, China, SBW (www.shengu.com.cn) is a large state-owned enterprise that provides an array of industrial equipment including large-scale compressors, blowers, fans, heat exchangers as well as large-scale nuclear power pumps, boiler feed pumps and petrochemical pumps. The company has more than 5,700 employees and approximately US$1.4 billion in annual sales.
SBW plans to erect its first 2-MW wind turbine in March 2010 and will be the fourth AMSC customer to enter volume production of advanced wind turbines in China. AMSC expects to begin shipping the electrical control systems to SBW in the second half of calendar 2010 and complete shipments in the first half of 2013.
AMSC Windtec co-developed the 2 MW doubly fed induction wind turbine with SBW under a contract signed in late 2008. Under the terms of the agreement, SBW has the right to sell the 2 MW wind turbines globally.
“The magnitude of this electrical control system contract sends a strong signal that Shenyang Blower Works is positioned to be a key player in China’s vibrant wind power market,” said Greg Yurek, founder and CEO of AMSC. “The company is planning to begin volume production later this year and sees significant long-term potential for this new line of business. AMSC expects to help every step of the way…”
AMSC’s wind turbine electrical control systems and core electrical components include the company’s proprietary PowerModule™ power converters, pitch and yaw converters, SCADA systems and other power electronics. They enable wind turbine operation by controlling power flows, regulating voltage, monitoring system performance, controlling the pitch of wind turbine blades and the yaw of the turbines to maximize efficiency.
In January AMSC announced a follow-on contract with China’s Dongfang Turbine Co. Ltd. to design and jointly develop 5-MW full conversion wind turbines for the offshore wind power market.
AMSC offers proprietary technologies and solutions spanning the electric power infrastructure–from generation to delivery to end use.
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