LM Wind Power, a designer and manufacturer of rotor blades for wind turbines, has commenced work on its new factory in Cherbourg, Normandy, France.
Headed by French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, a foundation stone ceremony was conducted at the construction site in the presence of local partners.
The company is bringing an initial investment of more than EUR 100 million into the development of the Cherbourg site, which is expected to grow to a capacity between 1.2 GW and 2.0 GW.
LM Wind Power is establishing the offshore-focused factory in response to demand for new offshore wind capacity in northern Europe. The company expects to start producing blades at the factory in 2018.
“The offshore market in Europe provides significant opportunities for growth in the coming years, and we are proud to be right at the center of that development with this new Cherbourg blade plant,” states Marc de Jong, CEO of LM Wind Power. “We thank GE Renewable Energy for their support to this second-to-none project, and we look forward to welcoming many new customers and hundreds of French colleagues into our global family.”
Denmark-headquartered LM Wind Power has a global manufacturing footprint that includes factories in Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, India, Poland, Spain and the U.S. The company says it has produced more than 185,000 blades since 1978; that corresponds to more than 77 GW of installed capacity. Earlier this week, LM Wind Power’s merger with GE was approved by the European Commission.
