US wind power outlook hits Danish turbine makers
Date: 03-May-02
Country: DENMARK
The news deflated shares in Danish wind turbine manufacturers NEG Micon and Vestas , which have risen sharply in recent weeks on expectations of strong demand for wind power in the U.S.
"We have only a rough guess of 20,000 megawatt of installed wind capacity in the U.S. by 2010," AWEA Deputy Executive Director Tom Gray told Reuters.
Analysts had expected industry capacity to grow to between 40,000 and 80,000 installed megawatts by 2010. Wind turbines generating some 4,000 megawatts had been installed in the U.S. by the end of 2001.
By 1034 GMT, shares in Vestas were down 0.8 percent at 264.50 crowns and NEG Micon was off 0.2 percent at 298 crowns on a firmer Copenhagen bourse.
"The more modest forecast of the U.S. market is weighing on Vestas and NEG Micon, which have both surged on bright U.S. market prospects recently," a Copenhagen-based trader said.
The two stocks have risen more than 10 percent since AWEA on Monday said an energy reform passed in the U.S. Senate included a five-year extension of the wind energy production tax credit, an important factor in financing new wind power installations.
