The controversy-hit industrial empire of billionaire Gautam Adani claimed a first step to building a range of “made in India” wind turbines as it announced type certification for a new model.
Adani Wind told investors on the Mumbai Stock Exchange that its 5.2MW onshore machine – which it is billing as “India’s largest” – received type certification from WindGuard.
The unit of Adani New Industries said it can now “start series production for global markets” of the turbine, which it developed with German technology partner W2E Wind to Energy. A prototype of the turbine with a 160-metre rotor diameter is installed in Mundra, India.
Adani joins a roll call of manufacturers competing for a share of India’s expanding wind power market, with contenders ranging from local stalwart Suzlon to China’s Envision and western giants such as Siemens Gamesa and Vestas.
“We are focused on building a portfolio of high-yield next generation wind turbines made in India and are well-poised to cater to the global wind energy demand,” said Milind Kulkarni, chief operating officer of Adani Wind.
The Adani Wind move into turbine manufacturing is the latest statement of intent by Adani, one of Asia's richest people, who earlier this year suffered a shares rout that wiped up to $100bn from the value of his conglomerate’s companies.
The fall was sparked by a report from a short-selling US research group called Hindenburg ahead of a $2.5bn share issue by its Adani Enterprises unit, with extraordinary claims that the Adani conglomerate had engaged in “brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud”.
Adani has consistently denied any malpractice and labelled the Hindenberg report a "deliberate and malicious attempt aimed at damaging our reputation and generating profits through a short-term drive-down of our stock prices", adding that official reports had exonerated the group.
