Leading Wind Turbine Suppliers in India in 2019

Here in this article, we list the top wind turbine suppliers in India for the year 2019, which saw a total of 2.4 GW in installations.

India is the world’s fourth-largest onshore wind market by installations, with 37.5 GW of capacity as of 2019, and has the potential for more than 695 GW at 120 metres hub height. And the resource is also the second most competitive energy source on India’s grid. However, project installations have been decelerating recently, with only 2.4 GW installed in 2019, around half of the 4.1 GW of volume installed in 2017, and just marginally better than the 2018 figure of 2.3 GW. The pity is that the Wind Energy sector faces none of the extreme dependence on Chinese imports that the solar sector does. In fact, Indian firms like Suzlon threatened briefly to make a real pitch for global leadership, before it all came crashing down.  

A new report by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) has forecasted that the wind energy capacity in India can only realistically reach 50 GW by 2022. That too will require concentrated efforts by the government to lower barriers around market design, grid infrastructure and land allocation, in order to revive auction appetite and resolve the execution challenges and help the sector reach the country’s ambitious 175 GW renewable energy target by 2022, of which 60 GW is due to come from wind energy.

The report finds that even in the high case scenario, the country is likely to fall short of its ambitious wind energy target for 2022. A pity, considering the obvious potential in the sector. We wrote yesterday about the potential from repowering, which itself is worth 10 GW possibly. 

Another report by BNEF has predicted that similar problems of land acquisition and transmission connectivity from the previous years, along with the added stress of COVID-19, will plague the sector in 2020, with expectations of 2.6 GW of new wind capacity additions in the year.

Here in this article, we attempt to list the top wind turbine suppliers in India for the year 2019, which saw a total of 2.4 GW in installations.

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy

Toppling the domestic foothold of former giant – Suzlon, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy was the leading supplier of wind energy turbines in India in 2019. The firm held a massive 30 percent or nearly a third of the entire market share.

Operational issues at other manufacturers, and the competitive nature of Siemens Gamesa, helped it reach the top position. The company was able to seize 453 MW of new turbine orders from Alfanar Company that were originally supposed to be supplied by Senvion.

Suzlon

Taking the biggest hit, debt-ridden local manufacturer Suzlon lost its grasp on the 41 percent market share it held in 2018, settling for just 19 percent in 2019. Still enough to see it finish in the second position, but the firms’ 2020 figures are supposed to be even lower as it battles both COVID-19 and continuing debt issues.

The firm installed 0.46 GW of projects in 2019, 50 percent lower than its installations in 2018. In May, the firm was given a second chance after its shareholders had approved its debt restructuring plan, helping it to get back into the business again.

Vestas

Third behind, Siemens Gamesa and Suzlon is the leading wind turbine supplier in the world for the year 2019 —Vestas. The firm accounted for a 15 percent share of the Indian market in 2019.

According to a report by GWEC, 22,893 wind turbines were installed globally in 2019 produced from 33 suppliers and accounting for over 63 GW of capacity, a new supply-side record in terms of capacity for the industry. And, Vestas continued to hold on to its place as top supplier in 2019, accounting for 18 percent of all wind turbines installed globally in the year.

Inox Wind

Noida headquartered Inox Wind finished fourth on the list with its 11 percent market share. The Indian manufacturer and service provider has reported a net loss in both of the last two quarters of the previous financial year.

The firm has, however, reported multiple new deals but turbine deliveries for the projects are set to begin this year, and hence didn’t account words the market share in 2019. The firm bagged a 250 MW EPC contract in Gujarat from Continuum Power, a 38 MW order from ReNew Power, and two deals with Adani.

GE Renewable Energy

Tied with Inox Wind in the fourth position is French company, GE Renewable Energy. The clean energy subsidiary of General Electric also held an 11 percent market share in the Indian wind market in 2019.

Recently, the firm had been awarded a 102.6 MW of wind turbine project in Gujarat from Naresh Oberoi-led Powerica Ltd. As per the deal, GE will supply 38 of its 2.7-132 onshore wind turbines, designed for low wind speed conditions, to be installed at the Rajkot and Khambaliya wind farms in the state of Gujarat.

Envision

Next on the list, is Chinese manufacturer Envision. The company narrowly followed behind GE Renewable Energy and Inox Wind with its 10 percent market share in 2019.

The firm also finished fifth behind GE Renewable Energy in the global wind supplier list for 2019 issued by GWEC. The firm which is the second-largest Chinese wind supplier behind Goldwind maintained its position thanks to an installation rush in its home market of China.

Senvion

Struggling German entity Senvion finished sixth, accounting for a 1 percent market share in 2019. The German firm struggled to manage its finances and had since sold its European assets to Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.

In India in 2019, the firm announced that it was selling its fully operational wind turbine manufacturing entity in the country to an undisclosed investor. The company entered into a binding agreement with a strategic investor to sell and transfer full ownership of Senvion India. The firm didn’t disclose the name of the investor but hinted that it is a world-wide industrial conglomerate with strong EPC capabilities.

Other market leaders accounted for a combined 3 percent market share in the year. The top two suppliers in Siemens Gamesa and Suzlon accounted for a combined 50 percent or half of the entire market for the year. However, if Suzlon’s project execution challenges continue, it could provide an opening in 2020 for Siemens Gamesa to strengthen its market leadership in India further. While other international manufacturers like GE, Acciona Nordex, Vestas and Envision could also try to eat into the former industry leader’s market share.

{The data for this article was sourced from BNEF’s report.}