The CEO of German wind-turbine maker Nordex SE is bullish about the company's growth prospects in Europe and its ambition for a revival in the US in the face of a "real threat" of competition from Chinese manufacturers.

While major Western competitors such as Vestas Wind Systems A/S and Siemens Energy AG are gearing up for a massive expansion of offshore wind, Nordex aims to stick with its focus on onshore, having led the European market in 2023 with a 40% share.

"We think we can do more volume," CEO José Luis Blanco said in a March 20 interview on the sidelines of WindEurope's annual conference in Bilbao, Spain. "We think we can grow with the market in Germany while keeping market share in the rest of Europe."

Among other potential growth areas, Nordex is embarking on an effort to resurrect its US presence — a market where it once had a share of 10%-15% but is now dominated by Vestas and local conglomerate GE Vernova LLC.

"We managed to do good business in Canada, but in the US, it's true that our competitors did substantially better than us," Blanco said. The CEO attributed the lost ground to decisions by Vestas and GE to develop high capacity factor turbines with bigger blades specifically designed for US conditions.

"We didn't, and we paid the price," Blanco said.

Nordex now plans to make up for lost time and bring out a US-focused version of its Delta4000 platform. Blanco said the sales release will take place this year, with a first project delivered in 2026. The company plans to utilize its mothballed nacelle production plant in West Branch, Iowa.

"I don't think we are going to do 40% [market share] like Europe. That's not possible," the CEO said. "But why not 10% to 15% market share?"

Offshore wind 'too big'

Nordex broke even in 2023 after a €244 million loss in 2022, in line with a wider industry trend of improving profitability among major Western turbine-makers. It aims to achieve a profit margin of 8% in the medium term.

While a return to the US is in the cards, Blanco does not envision a similar U-turn for Nordex in offshore wind, which the company exited in 2012.

"It's just too big for us," the CEO said. "[There are] too many market participants already, and the capital requirements are massive, and the lead time to recover the capital is very long."

Instead, Nordex continues to work on a renewable hydrogen venture with Spanish industrial group Acciona SA, its largest shareholder, that will see the pair develop projects and manufacture electrolyzers.

Blanco said the companies are developing a 50-GW pipeline with a view to installing their first projects in about 2028. However, it remains to be seen whether hydrogen can be as profitable a side gig for Nordex as offshore wind is for its competitors.

"We said offshore [is] not for us because we are latecomers. In hydrogen, we might be first movers," Blanco said. "It's not for today, but it's ... a promising business."

'Real threat' from Chinese manufacturers

Blanco, who is also chair of WindEurope, voiced wariness about growing competition from Chinese turbine-makers.

Analysts at Deutsche Bank said in a March 1 note that Chinese manufacturers are offering average selling prices that are 20% to 30% lower than their Western peers. Yet the companies have struggled to build a meaningful presence in developed markets due to a range of factors, such as political considerations, local content requirements and financing concerns.

However, the lower prices could be attractive for developers in emerging markets, which the Deutsche Bank analysts said represent about one-third of Nordex's target markets.

"We are competing against [Chinese turbine-makers] in Brazil, in South Africa, in Serbia, in Romania, so it's a real threat," Blanco said.

The CEO welcomed efforts at an EU level to boost the competitiveness and resilience of Europe's clean technology manufacturing space, such as adopting prequalification criteria around responsible business conduct, cybersecurity and data security.

The EU's Wind Power Action Plan, unveiled in 2023, said the wind sector should operate in a "fair and competitive international environment." Referencing the growing threat of Chinese competition, it said it would "make full use of the tools at its disposal," including trade barriers, to ensure a level playing field.

"We are advocating to policymakers to take into consideration the resilience criteria, to take into consideration that the grid is critical to national security, and that you need to be careful of the products that you allow to connect to the grid in order to try to avoid the sector [being] weaponized," Blanco said.