Offshore wind OEM MHI Vestas has signed a contract with Taiwanese outfit Tien Li to manufacture blades for turbines to be delivered for upcoming projects off the south-east Asian nation.
A new manufacturing facility will be built in Taichung Harbour as part of the deal, claimed by MHI Vestas to be the first localisation agreement made by a turbine manufacturer to enable blade production locally in Taiwan.
“The finalisation of this contract is a significant milestone for the delivery of the comprehensive industrial plan we have developed for Taiwan,” said MHI Vestas chief supply chain officer Robert Borin.
“This agreement with Tien Li [will] deliver a critical piece of our industrial plan, by ensuring that blades for our world-class V-174 turbines are made locally. We look forward to working with Tien Li to supply our customers with Taiwanese blades.”
MHI Vestas has won firm contracts for the Changfang and Xidao projects developed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), which have a combined capacity of 589MW. The OEM is also the preferred supplier for the 300MW Zhong Neng project by CIP and China Steel Corporation.
The cooperation of MHI Vestas and Tien Li will generate up to NT$4.38bn ($145m) for the Taiwanese economy and up to nearly 3,000 jobs in blade production to Taiwan between 2020 and 2025.
“Blades, which are key components of wind turbines, being produced locally will stimulate the research and development of composite materials and will create numerous job opportunities in Taiwan,” said Tien Li general manager Jay Hsu.