WindEurope’s Board of Directors has elected Andreas Nauen, CEO of Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE), as the association’s Chair for the next 18 months. Nauen will lead the association together with Nicolas Couderc, EDF Renewables Executive Vice-President, who serves as Vice Chair.
Nauen steps in at a critical juncture for the wind industry. Europe wants a major expansion of wind energy to deliver climate-neutrality by 2050. And the EU is planning to raise its 2030 ambition on emission reduction and renewable energy expansion in support of that. Europe also wants renewables to be a key driver of the economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis.
Commenting on his appointment, Andreas Nauen said: “The European industry has proven to be in the driving seat of the development of wind energy globally. We have built strong skills, gained vast experience and developed a reliable value chain across the Continent. We must rely on all these attributes to take a big step towards the decarbonisation and electrification of the economy. We are in the right business, at the right time. Renewables have proven to be the most resilient source of energy amid the pandemic. Besides, the ambitious renewable objectives that governments are deploying around the world, such as the recently launched European Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy by 2050, makes us positive for an economic recovery based on clean energy”.
“The path towards a just and sustainable energy transition is a collective task. It is a tremendous honor that my colleagues in the wind industry have chosen me to represent the interests of wind’s entire value chain. You have my commitment that we will work hard to make heard the voice of an industry that provides enormous industrial potential, technology leadership in addition to stable, clean energy supply”, added Nauen.
Nauen, a mechanical engineer by background, has been SGRE’s CEO since June 2020. Before that he was CEOs of SGRE’s Offshore Business. Previously he was CEO of Siemens Wind Power and of REpower/Senvion. He has also served as Chairman of the wind energy part of the German machine tool manufacturers association, the VDMA.
WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson said: “We’re delighted to have Andreas Nauen as our new Chair. Having one of world’s leading turbine manufacturers at the helm of WindEurope is a great asset to us. And Andreas knows the onshore and offshore wind business inside out. He’s an ideal person to steer what our industry does to deliver the energy transition and to help drive a green economic recovery in Europe.”
