Gamesa sets up wind turbine unit in Chennai

Gamesa Corporacion Tecnologica, a Spanish company specialising in sustainable energy technologies, especially fabrication of wind turbines and setting up of wind farms, on Wednesday announced the launch of its operations in India with the setting up of a subsidiary – Gamesa Wind Turbines Private Limited.

After inaugurating the company’s plant near Chennai, which will produce G58/850 Kw wind turbines suited for the Indian grid and wind conditions, Gamesa Corporacion chairman and chief executive officer Jorge Calvet Spinatsch said, “India and China will be the two major hubs for the company in Asia, both for manufacturing turbines and for wind farms.”

Gemesa, which currently has four manufacturing plants in China, has invested around 40 million euro (Rs 256 crore) in its 500-Mw per year capacity facility in Chennai. “At present, the plant employs over 100. We will be doubling the headcount by the end of this year,” said Gamesa Wind Turbines chairman and managing director Ramesh Kymal.

Gamesa India has already started wind research activities along with power evacuation facilities for developing wind farm sites to meet its business plans. The company has already signed contracts in India and Sri Lanka for installation of more than 60 Mw.

On the wind farms business front, Spinatsch said the company will invest around 100 million euro (Rs 640 crore) to set up wind farms. “Our initial focus will be on Tamil Nadu, where we are planning to set up one 85-Mw wind farm in Theni and one with a capacity of 50 Mw in Coimbatore,” Kymal said, adding that the company will adopt the realty promoters’ model – developing the wind farms and later selling them to customers.

Currently, the wind farm business contributes around 20 per cent to the group’s overall turnover, which was 3.6 billion euro in 2008.

“India is undoubtedly a market having outstanding wind energy growth prospects where we are undertaking significant long-term commitments and where we hope to attain a progressively larger market share,” Spinatsch said. “India will also be an important market for sourcing technology. We will explore opportunities to tie up with educational institutes and other research and development houses, going forward.”