Important choices facing them include turbine design (generator type, gearbox vs. gear-less, materials) and how much control to maintain over component supplies (internal vs. external).
They must be concerned with maintaining their extensive fleets of operating turbines while at the same time developing newer and ever-larger models.
This involves purchasing or leasing land, installing meteorological equipment to quantify the wind resource, and securing transmission, power sales, turbine supply, construction, and financing agreements.
Most of these companies maintain financial independence (no ownership stake) from wind farm projects in order to guarantee unbiased service to their clients.
They are usually part of government agencies or universities and conduct research on aspects of wind power that are currently cost-prohibitive for the private industry to invest in.
Spain’s Gamesa came in fourth place for onshore turbine installations, narrowly ahead of Germany’s Enercon.
Significant growth was also noted in the Asia-Pacific region, mainly driven by China with a 106% increase, and in Latin America and Africa, where Brazil and Middle Eastern countries respectively saw substantial rises in installations.
Despite these advances, the industry faces challenges such as political uncertainty and infrastructural limitations, which were highlighted at the UN’s climate summit in Dubai, where over 100 countries committed to enhancing global renewable capacity and energy efficiency by 2030.