Read the first half of the Review of 2017 here.
July
German manufacturer Enercon is set to refurbish up to 1,200 turbines in India, following the conclusion of a decade-long legal dispute with former joint venture Wind World India.
The firm says some 860MW of its turbines could be re-activated and updated after its ten-year absence from the world's fourth largest market, where Enercon has roughly 6,700 turbines installed.
Elsewhere in India, the country's 1GW power auction received 2.8GW of bids, following the success of its first auction earlier in the year.
The results, announced later in October, will see prices fall to a new low of INR 2.64/kWh ($0.04/kWh).
In Europe, developer Vattenfall has a reshuffle of its wind unit. The business area is split in three; onshore, offshore, and solar PV with storage.
Vattenfall Wind CEO Gunnar Groeblar said the move 'creates a lean business model...that can respond to different markets'.
Also this month, Vattenfall reports a 75% increase of its underlying profit in H1 to SEK1.5 billion (€110 million).
Nordex's record-breaking 230-metre high turbine in southwest Germany produces over 9GWh of electricity in its first year
August
In a Windpower Monthly exclusive, Enercon unveils a new modular approach it is taking with its 3MW platform.
The move is in response to the shift to auction-based systems around the world forcing margins to be compressed, meaning Enercon was losing out to cheaper rivals.
All future Enercon turbines will be based on the new design approach and will meet IEC wind class demands exactly, rather than exceed them, the manufacturer says.
Rival manufacturer Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) announces it is making up to 600 further job cuts at its blade plant in Aalborg.
The move comes just eight months after an initial 150 jobs were cut at the site in February — prior to Siemens' merger with Gamesa.
Also this month, other rival OEMs go to court over a potential patent infringement. GE Renewable Energy files a dispute in California claiming market leader Vestas was in breach of its zero voltage ride through (ZVRT) technology patent.
Vestas' offshore wind joint venture also suffers a tricky August. MHI Vestas launched an investigation after its 9.5MW prototype in Østerild, Denmark, catches fire.
The ensuing examination in to the cause of the fire finds a component 'damaged during installation' was to blame. MHI Vestas said the piece was "unique to a prototype environment" and said the roll-out of the turbine would not be affected.
Finally, Gamesa also suffers a fire at a 13-year-old turbine in Japan. Several local news outlets show a burned-out nacelle.
September
GE Renewable Energy continues the year's big technological trend, with the launch of a new 4.8MW onshore turbine for low- to medium-wind markets like Germany, the Netherlands, Turkey, Chile and Australia.
The new model features a 158-metre rotor and will offer the industry's largest annual energy production (AEP), GE claims.
Meanwhile, Vestas confirms it is working with Elon Musk's Tesla on energy storage solutions. Vestas is looking to increase its involvement in integrating wind and storage solutions and has been working on a number of small-scale projects over recent years.
The year is shaping up to be a difficult one for the leading manufacturers, and Nordex is not an exception. It announces a €45 million cost-cutting programme, which would also see up to 500 jobs lost, mostly in Germany.
Vestas, meanwhile, signs a deal to set up a manufacturing hub in Russia, on the back of potentially winning a 1GW deal with Finnish developer Fortum and ints joint venture partner Rusnano, which won the majority of capacity in June's 1.65GW tender.
The Danish manufacturer will also help set up training programmes and aid the transfer of skills and knowledge, according to reports.
October
Andreas Nauen is back as a leading light in a major OEM. The former Senvion CEO is appointed to lead SGRE's offshore division, following the departure of Michael Hannibal.
In a small reshuffle at the top of the world's newest manufacturer, driven by struggling financial results — earlier this month the manufacturer downgraded its 2017 forecast — SGRE also appointed Miguel Angel Lopez as SGRE chief financial officer, replacing Andrew Hall, while Juergen Bartl replaces Jose Antonio Cortajarena as general secretary.
Changes are afoot elsewhere, as Vattenfall names its new CFO following the departure Stefan Dohler to EWE.
Anna Borg, its senior vice president of business area markets will replace Dohler from 1 November.
Max Bögl has broken its own record for the tallest onshore turbine in the world, completing a 246.5-metre machine in Germany.
The GE 3.4MW turbine, installed near Stuttgart, southwest Germany, incorporates a 40-metre high water reservoir at the base of the tower as part of a pumped-hydro storage solutions.
The turbine surpasses the 230-metre high Nordex turbine, also featuring a Max Bögl tower installed last year.
October is also the month the floating wind industry is born. Statoil's Hywind Scotland project begins production, while Ideol inaugurated its ring-shaped pool-dampening floater, topped with a Vestas 2MW turbine, in the port of St-Nazaire, France.
Ideol CEO Paul de la Guérivière describes the moment as a "turning point" in the floating wind sector.
"Knowing that up to 80% of the offshore wind resources are in deep waters (60 metres-plus) where traditional bottom fixed installations are not suitable, floating offshore wind is expected to play a significant role in the growth of offshore wind going forward," Statoil's New Energies Solutions executive vice president Irene Rummelhof says.
November
SGRE unveils its new offshore wind turbine at WindEurope's conference and exhibition in Amsterdam.
The 8MW direct-drive model is equipped with a 167-metre rotor and has a power-mode option to increase output to 9MW. It is the result of a continuous evolution of the 6.0-154 model launched in 2011.
Also at the show, SGRE launches a new 4MW geared platform with one model per wind speed class.
Meanwhile, Chinese manufacturer Envision reveals three new onshore models including a 4.5MW machine.
Also this month, Windpower Monthly takes a look at some of the industry's most influential and interesting people from the last 12 months.
The list reflects the growing attention shown to storage and flexible grid solutions in the last 12 months.
Leading Indian manufacturer Suzlon showcases a textbook reverse in fortune for many of the industry's turbine manufacturers by recording a 56% year-on-year fall in income in Q3, due to the market uncertainty in the subcontinent.
The manufacturer reported a profit of INR 681 million in the third quarter — a 72.07% reduction year-on-year — but was only able to do so after filing for voluntary liquidation of its Brazilian operations in July.
December
Germany's energy regulator BNetzA sets a maximum bid price of €63/MWh for onshore wind auctions in 2018, after this year's tenders pushed wind prices to an average below €50/MWh.
According to the original renewable energy act in 2017, the maximum price for the 2018 auctions would be set by the results of this year's tenders.
BNetzA is concerned the low results this year would mean a lack of interest in 2018 auction as prices were below that of current generation costs.
By putting in a higher maximum price, the regulator hopes to attract competition to the auction.
Eight wind farms with an installed capacity of almost 666MW in Argentina are awarded power purchase agreements (PPA) in the second round of auctions to supply renewable power to regulated clients.
The contracts averaged a price of $41.23/MWh, down from $53.34/MWh in the previous round. The lowest contracted price is $37.30/MWh, and the highest $46.67/MWh.
The result means wind energy is once again the cheapest technology in Argentina, beating 12 solar PV projects, which achieved an average price of $43.46/MWh.
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