Wind Energy Denmark 2022 has opened, and there is already full focus on what has happened since last year in Herning. The war in Ukraine has helped to boost wind power even more.
Polytech's CMO Jesper Sloth is one of the participants and speakers. Normally, one would imagine that the marketing director would come to DTU Risø, where the conference is taking place, in the company car - but he has followed Green Power Denmark's invitation to take public transport to Wind Energy Denmark 2022.
- We just arrived by train, says Jesper Sloth, who is living the green trend to the fullest.
Where is the wind industry today, and what are the challenges here and now. Jesper Sloth would like to give a brief overview of that.
- I see the stagnation as the main problem right now. This year, from the first to the third quarter, there have been incoming orders for 7.7 GW in wind, but if we are to reach the EU's target for 2030, we need to go all the way up to 39 GW per year. Otherwise, we will not reach the EU's target of 510 GW in 2030, says Jesper Sloth.
Sustainability is something that is particularly close to his mind, and he believes that there is a need for a perhaps sensible way to improve sustainability.
- It is a bit like an arms race, where there are too many different variants within the wind industry. We need standardization of the products. The alternative is that there are far too many changes and a short lifespan. We need to increase the lifespan in order to achieve better sustainability and lower CO2 emissions. A good way to succeed in this is if the products have a long lifespan, says Jesper Sloth, who has a very specific example:
- It is no use if we make a product in bamboo with low CO2 emissions in production if it only lasts five years.
Profit is missing
Earnings are also a child of pain that has not been forgotten. And the economic situation in the world does not make it any better.
- We are plagued by a lack of profit, where high energy prices drive high inflation. This in turn results in higher costs throughout the industry. Historically, there has been an expectation of decreasing costs over time, but now we are caught in a period of high costs and low prices, says Jesper Sloth.
But there are now also bright spots that are starting to work
- We must have reversed the negative trend, and we are on track with an increase of 31 percent for the MW price at Vestas since the same quarter last year. That is positive, states Jesper Sloth.
However, it is not entirely good either.
- The other side of the coin is that higher prices mean fewer orders. That is why we are seeing a decline in orders of 49 percent. compared to the same quarter last year, for example at Vestas, he concludes.
Rights cost in the supply chain
Technological development in the supply chain is another area where Jesper Sloth sees challenges.
- Wind turbine manufacturers are still taking too much of intellectual property (IP). This makes technology development difficult throughout the supply chain. There is a need to accept IP ownership in the industry, where sharing of technologies is ensured, explains Jesper Sloth and elaborates:
- This will give suppliers the opportunity to produce better quality and minimize risk in the supply chain. It will also mean lower costs.
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