Danish windmill giant eyes Chinese market

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COPENHAGEN - The Danish windmill giant Vestas is showing renewed interest in China this year, after suffering a sharp decrease in its industry share during the recent global financial crisis, the Danish business newspaper Borsen reported Thursday.

The leading manufacturer, seller and installer of wind turbines, Vestas is hoping to make a comeback in the country, the news report quoted Marika Fredriksson, chief financial officer of Vestas, as saying.

During the tough years of the crisis, Vestas was forced to shut factories and lay off thousands of employees in Denmark and abroad. But now, the wind turbine giant is once pursuing growth in the Chinese market as "the winds of change are blowing in the Danish company's favor once more," she said.

According to the company's figures, Vestas installed 13.2 percent of all wind turbines worldwide in 2013 and produced 28 percent more power than its nearest competitor, marking the completion of a turnaround for the company, following crisis in 2011 and 2012.

The turnaround comes at the same time as the company shifts its focus east. "While still important, the European market is stagnating compared to other markets like Asia, North and Latin America, South Africa and elsewhere," Fredriksson told the newspaper.

Statistics show Vestas' share of the Chinese market has dropped from five to one percent over the past two years, as western players have seen a consolidation among Chinese wind turbine producers. The ten biggest players in the field own almost 80 percent of the market.