Siemens Wind Power
Encyclopedia
Siemens Wind Power, or SWP, (formerly Bonus Energy A/S) is a wind turbine
manufacturer with headquarters and main production facilities established in 1980 in Brande
, Denmark
. SWP is wholly owned by Siemens
of Germany
since 2004 through the Renewable Energy division in the Siemens Energy sector. In 2009, SWP had 5.9% share of the world wind turbine market, and had installed half of all European offshore wind turbines by capacity and number.
In 1991, Bonus installed Vindeby, the first offshore wind farm in the world.
SWP is the only company in the long line of Danish wind turbine companies that has not experienced a bankruptcy.
In 2010 SWP acquired 49% of A2SEA
(an offshore wind farm installation company) from DONG Energy
for a price of DKK 860m.
is in Brande
, Denmark
, with additional factories and offices in other countries.
Part of the sales office and project management moved to Hamburg
, Germany
in May 2009.
In November 2010, SWP had orders of DKK 74B, whereas Vestas
had orders of DKK 45B.
In September 2011, Siemens announced that SWP headquarters will be moved to Hamburg on 1 October 2011. SWP was one of 56 business units within Siemens (a unit in the Renewable Division), but from 1 October 2011 becomes a division, with publicly accessible financial reports.
Research and main production will remain in Brande, Denmark.
From the Siemens takeover in 2004 until 2011, wind power has grown from 0.5% to 5% of the combined Siemens turnover, and employees grew from 800 to 7,800, of which 5,200 are in Denmark.
Wind Power has filed 242 wind turbine patents according to United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UK-IPO), while Vestas
has filed 787 and General Electric
has 666.
In 2008, SWP opened an R&D
center in Boulder, Colorado
, where "aerodynamicists are of a much higher quality".
The first grid-connected deep-water floating wind turbine
in the world is an SWP 2.3 called Hywind.
A new 52m blade is tested 4 million times under load before approval.
SWT 2.3 MW (gearless) with 113 meter rotor
SWT 3.0 MW (gearless) with 101 meter rotor, containing 2 tons of magnets with neodymium
SWT 3.6 MW with 107 and 120 meter rotor
SWT 6.0 MW with 120 and 154 meter rotor (360t tower head mass)
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
manufacturer with headquarters and main production facilities established in 1980 in Brande
Brande
Brande is a railway town with a population of 6,959 located at the railroad between Vejle and Herning in Ikast-Brande municipality in Region Midtjylland in the central area of the Jutland peninsula in west Denmark....
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. SWP is wholly owned by Siemens
Siemens
Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...
of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
since 2004 through the Renewable Energy division in the Siemens Energy sector. In 2009, SWP had 5.9% share of the world wind turbine market, and had installed half of all European offshore wind turbines by capacity and number.
History
The company was founded as Danregn Vindkraft A/S in 1980 and changed name to Bonus Energy in 1983. It was sold to Siemens on 1 December 2004 for an undisclosed amount, but before the sale the value was assessed to be somewhere between DKK 1.5 (USD 240 million) and 2.5 billion (USD 400 million).In 1991, Bonus installed Vindeby, the first offshore wind farm in the world.
SWP is the only company in the long line of Danish wind turbine companies that has not experienced a bankruptcy.
In 2010 SWP acquired 49% of A2SEA
A2SEA
A2SEA is an offshore wind farm installation and services company based in Fredericia, Denmark. The company is specialized on transport, installation, and servicing of offshore wind farms. In addition to Denmark, the company has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom and Germany.-History:A2SEA was...
(an offshore wind farm installation company) from DONG Energy
DONG Energy
-History:The Danish state company Dansk Naturgas A/S was founded in 1972 to manage resources in the Danish sector of the North Sea. After some years, the company was renamed to Dansk Olie og Naturgas A/S . At the beginning of 2000s, DONG started to extend itself into the electricity market by...
for a price of DKK 860m.
Operations
The main nacelle production facility and R&DResearch and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...
is in Brande
Brande
Brande is a railway town with a population of 6,959 located at the railroad between Vejle and Herning in Ikast-Brande municipality in Region Midtjylland in the central area of the Jutland peninsula in west Denmark....
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, with additional factories and offices in other countries.
Part of the sales office and project management moved to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in May 2009.
In November 2010, SWP had orders of DKK 74B, whereas Vestas
Vestas
Vestas Wind Systems A/S is a Danish manufacturer, seller, installer, and servicer of wind turbines. It is the largest in the world, but due to very rapid growth of its competitors, its market share decreased from 28% in 2007 to 12.5% in 2009...
had orders of DKK 45B.
In September 2011, Siemens announced that SWP headquarters will be moved to Hamburg on 1 October 2011. SWP was one of 56 business units within Siemens (a unit in the Renewable Division), but from 1 October 2011 becomes a division, with publicly accessible financial reports.
Research and main production will remain in Brande, Denmark.
From the Siemens takeover in 2004 until 2011, wind power has grown from 0.5% to 5% of the combined Siemens turnover, and employees grew from 800 to 7,800, of which 5,200 are in Denmark.
Business strategy
During the first years of operation, Bonus preferred to source and assemble components from suppliers rather than producing their own.Research and development
SiemensSiemens
Siemens may refer toSiemens, a German family name carried by generations of telecommunications industrialists, including:* Werner von Siemens , inventor, founder of Siemens AG...
Wind Power has filed 242 wind turbine patents according to United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office (UK-IPO), while Vestas
Vestas
Vestas Wind Systems A/S is a Danish manufacturer, seller, installer, and servicer of wind turbines. It is the largest in the world, but due to very rapid growth of its competitors, its market share decreased from 28% in 2007 to 12.5% in 2009...
has filed 787 and General Electric
General Electric
General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
has 666.
In 2008, SWP opened an R&D
Research and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...
center in Boulder, Colorado
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
, where "aerodynamicists are of a much higher quality".
The first grid-connected deep-water floating wind turbine
Floating wind turbine
A floating wind turbine is an offshore wind turbine mounted on a floating structure that allows the turbine to generate electricity in water depths where bottom-mounted towers are not feasible...
in the world is an SWP 2.3 called Hywind.
A new 52m blade is tested 4 million times under load before approval.
Products
SWT 2.3 MW with 82, 93, 101 meter rotor diameterSWT 2.3 MW (gearless) with 113 meter rotor
SWT 3.0 MW (gearless) with 101 meter rotor, containing 2 tons of magnets with neodymium
Neodymium
Neodymium is a chemical element with the symbol Nd and atomic number 60. It is a soft silvery metal that tarnishes in air. Neodymium was discovered in 1885 by the Austrian chemist Carl Auer von Welsbach. It is present in significant quantities in the ore minerals monazite and bastnäsite...
SWT 3.6 MW with 107 and 120 meter rotor
SWT 6.0 MW with 120 and 154 meter rotor (360t tower head mass)
See also
- List of wind turbine manufacturers
- List of Danish wind turbine manufacturers
- Renewable energy industry
- Wind powerWind powerWind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
- Wind power in DenmarkWind power in DenmarkWind power provided 18.9% of electricity production and 24.1% of generation capacity in Denmark in 2008, Denmark was a pioneer in developing commercial wind power during the 1970s, and today almost half of the wind turbines around the world are produced by Danish manufacturers such as Vestas and...