Trade Relations with US May Be Stormy, but China’s Wind Tower Industry Remains Unbowed

Friday 27 July 2012, Amsterdam

Recent trade disputes with the US will do little to damage China’s domination of the global wind tower market, finds the new Wind Tower - Global Market Size, Market Segmentation, Competitive landscape and Key Country Analysis to 2020 report.

Late last month, the US Commerce Department slapped tariffs on imports of wind towers from China following accusations that the Chinese government subsidized domestic manufacturers in order to flood the US market.

The tariffs range from 13.74% to 26%, depending on the company, and though the decision is preliminary (with the final order in October), if enforced it will damage the Chinese wind tower export industry by increasing prices and reducing demand in its largest market.

However, according to the report, the affect on China’s overall wind tower industry will be relatively minor due to the small percentage maintained by the export sector.

The Asian giant exported 2.4 GW and 2.6GW of towers in 2010 and 2011 respectively, but these numbers are dwarfed by the 18GW of towers installed at home.

In 2011 alone, China installed 12,766 towers, accounting for 53% of the global market. To put this figure in perspective, the second largest market shareholder was the US, with a comparatively few 3,782 installations. Due to lower production costs, favourable government subsidies and the sheer scale of manufacturing in the country, China is both the world’s largest producer and consumer of wind towers.

2011 was a fantastic year for the global wind energy market, following a dip the previous year. From a value of 74,192 Megawatts (MW) in 2006, the installed capacity grew at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 26.3% to reach 238,351 MW in 2011. This is expected to grow further still to 427,338 MW by 2015.

The financial crisis substantially hindered the increase of wind power capacity in 2009 and 2010, but the revival of suspended projects in 2011 witnessed a steep rise which is expected to continue in 2012.

As technological advances increase turbine efficiency, GlobalData expects wind energy capacity to increase significantly by 2020, while the number of towers erected each year will fall as the amount required to achieve energy targets will be less.

This report offers comprehensive information and analysis of the wind tower market. The report provides clear understanding and deep insights into the global wind tower market. It explains the key drivers and challenges impacting the market, and also provides data regarding historic and forecast growth of the wind tower market.

This report was built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research, and in-house analysis conducted by a team of industry experts.