Jürgen Zeschky sees the danger that the production of wind turbines and associated components will largely disappear from Germany has not yet been averted. “If we continue as before, there is a great risk that things will go like photovoltaics,” says the boss of the wind turbine manufacturer Enercon from Aurich. Solar cells, which convert solar energy into electricity, have long been a source of hope in this country. But German manufacturers could not withstand the competition from the Far East. Many companies gave up. Now it is the wind industry that is struggling with major problems – despite all political commitments to climate protection and more economic independence.
At the industry trade fair in Husum, Schleswig-Holstein, the uncertainty is palpable this week. Orders are indeed increasing compared to the crisis year of 2022, also because approval procedures for inland wind farms are now running better and more efficiently. But the recovery in the German home market is not yet enough to ensure that the local plants of turbine manufacturers such as Enercon, Nordex and Siemens Gamesa are being used to reasonable capacity after a long dry spell. There are still problems in many places, says Martin Knops, head of technology at ZF Wind Power, a supplier to turbine manufacturers. “We need a new industrial policy to give the industry new impetus.”
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