Nordex CEO on Trump impact and Chinese competition

“We might see some short-term delays in customer decisions given the uncertainty of political changes,” Blanco said in an interview ahead of the WindEurope event that starts in Copenhagen on Tuesday.

“But over five to ten years, we expect decent demand to continue in the market, and hence this will remain an important market for us.”

Trump’s attacks on the wind industry come at an awkward time for Nordex as the OEM had decided last summer to re-open its nacelle factory in West Branch, Iowa.

But Blanco said the company intends “to continue with our planned manufacturing activities and creating jobs.”

The CEO stressed that currently “Nordex has little exposure to the US market and that there is no financial risk related to the US, meaning that we can deliver our financial targets with or without the US in 2025 and 2026.”

Despite the political upheaval triggered by Trump, Blanco still believes that the US will remain one of the largest onshore wind markets outside of China.

“We expect the fundamental growth drivers for onshore wind to remain intact over the long term as current developments – such as the boom in artificial intelligence – are expected to increase energy demand further, and hence any energy source, including renewable energy will remain important in the energy mix to meet this demand.”

“Facing Chinese competition in some European countries”

But the Nordex boss pointed out that onshore turbines aren't solely determined by generator capacity in megawatts.

“This is different to offshore turbines,” he claimed.

“The combination of hub heights, rotor diameters and power ratings must be considered together depending on the specific wind regimes, local transport rules, grid compliance and a solid and reliable service network.

“We continuously evaluate technological advancements internally to make timely and appropriate portfolio decisions for the market.”