Mitsubishi opens dedicated wind turbine production facility

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), which plans to launch a 2.4 MW turbine onto the market by March, has built a dedicated turbine production facility at its Nagasaki shipyard and machinery works. The factory should boost the company's turbine production by 60%, increasing its output to 480 units a year, says MHI. In 2003, MHI supplied and installed 221 MW of wind power plant, with around 146 MW expected this year. The company's main wind business is done overseas. It has under 8% of the domestic wind market. By the end of September, it had installed 827 MW worldwide, with all but 46 MW of it outside Japan. As part of its growth strategy, MHI has already strengthened its marketing base for wind turbines in the US and launched blade production in Mexico. It expects around 78% of the Nagasaki factory's business to be exports, mainly to the US, the Middle East, and other Asian countries.