Today His Majesty the King Frederik X of Denmark, Vestas CEO Henrik Andersen, Szczecin Mayor Piotr Krzystek and WindEurope Deputy CEO Malgosia Bartosik took part in Vestas’ foundation stone ceremony for its new nacelle and hub assembly factory in Szczecin, Poland. The new factory is the latest example of the industry’s commitment to expand the European wind supply chain to help meet Europe’s energy security and climate objectives. National Governments across Europe must deliver on their own actions set out in the Wind Power Package as they have committed to by signing the European Wind Charter.
The EU wants to install 420 GW of wind energy by 2030 to meet its climate and energy security goals, up from 276 GW today. And it wants to achieve this by using wind turbines ‘Made in Europe’. The European wind industry is determined to deliver on those big volumes as Governments continue to address the challenges that slowed wind expansion in recent years.
Last year the European Commission set out a game-changing “Wind Power Package” with 15 immediate actions to strengthen the competitiveness of Europe’s wind value chain. These include accelerating permitting, clearly setting future auction volumes, indexing auction tariffs, and an expanded role for the European Investment Bank in helping finance investments in new factories. The bulk of the actions fall to National Governments. 26 EU Member States and more than 300 companies from the wind energy sector formally committed to delivering on the actions by endorsing the “European Wind Charter“.
Today’s Vestas factory ceremony in Szczecin, Poland affirms that the industry is already delivering on its part of the Wind Power Package. The new offshore nacelle and hub assembly factory is expected to begin operations in 2025 and will create 700 direct jobs. Vestas also just announced plans to establish a second factory in Szczecin to produce offshore blades.
Taken together, the two factories could create more than 1,700 direct jobs by 2026. The two sites will play a vital role in supplying Europe’s and especially Poland’s growing offshore wind fleet. Poland wants to install 6 GW offshore wind by 2030, and 18 GW by 2040.
In parallel with the implementation of the excellent Wind Power Package. The EU is finalising negotiations on the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA). A core provision of NZIA is improving the design of renewable energy auctions. Currently, most auctions are based on price only. This does not reflect the added value of the European wind supply chain in terms of jobs, security and autonomy for Europe. The solution is to set clear and harmonised pre-qualification and non-price award criteria.
WindEurope Deputy CEO Malgosia Bartosik said: ‘’Vestas’ investment in Szczecin is fantastic news. It will make Europe’s wind supply chain more resilient and help boost our energy security. The European wind industry has been through a tough time, but it’s roaring back. Today’s event shows the industry is doing what it takes to deliver on our climate and energy targets.’’
