Leading international trade fair WindEnergy strengthens Hamburg`s position as the European wind energy capital
Leading international trade fair WindEnergy strengthens Hamburg`s position as the European wind energy capital
At yesterday’s advanced press conference, the “Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH” presented the WindEnergy as a showcase for all internationally active companies as well as current and emerging national markets. These include
planners, manufacturers, suppliers, financers, operators, energy utility companies and service providers. In addition to the key players, small and medium-sized businesses from all areas of the value creation chain will also be present in Hamburg. More than 15 country pavilions from Denmark to the United States and China will be showcasing international character of the wind energy industry. One of the focuses will be on the offshore-sector – at present 40 per
cent of the exhibitors are connected with this part of the industry.
“The industry will give an impressive presentation at WindEnergy Hamburg of what it is doing for innovative solutions and sustainable energy supply,” said Bernd Aufderheide, President and CEO Hamburg Messe und Congress. The innovative strength of plant manufacturers and equipment suppliers was one of the main subjects of the advance press conference. The focus was on new developments which make power generation from wind even more efficient both onshore and offshore. “The wind industry is well known for being driven by technological progress,” said Andreas Nauen, Chairman of the Wind Industry Division of VDMA (German Engineering Federation) and CEO Senvion SE. It knows which route to take, based on studies of cost reduction potentials.
German “Energiewende” at WindEnergy Hamburg
Key subjects at WindEnergy Hamburg will include the “Energiewende” (Energy Transition) in Germany as a leading technology nation, and the important role of wind energy in implementing that. “Many countries are looking towards Germany and watching how this highly developed industry is handling the Energiewende, including exit from nuclear power,” said Leopold Greipl. Hermann Albers, President German Wind Energy Association (BWE), said “Hamburg will show the government in Germany very impressively that onshore wind energy is the low-cost driver of the Energiewende.” He believes it is essential for the countries of Europe to set binding, ambitious climate action goals in order to give wind good perspectives for the future in Europe. In addition, he felt it was vital to “stop dependency on fossil energy imports from insecure regions.” At the same time such goals would strengthen the value chain in Europe. More information about the WindEnergy Hamburg: www.windenergyhamburg.com.
Hamburg – Europe’s wind energy capital
For many of the industry’s global players, WindEnergy Hamburg will be a home game as leading companies from the entire value creation chain such as DONG Energy, Nordex, Senvion and Siemens have established their headquarters in Hamburg. At the same time, the hinterland with its numerous production sites perfectly complements Hamburg as an international development, sales and service centre. Among industry insiders, Hamburg is now considered Europe’s wind energy capital – and thus the perfect setting for bringing together specialists from around the world and serving as a meeting point for the energy industry. According to a study commissioned by the cluster Renewable Energies Hamburg (EEHH), in 2012 around 25,000 people were working in 1,466 regenerative energy companies in the region between Cuxhaven and Lübeck, and Neumünster and Lüneburg. From 2008 to 2012 the number of jobs in the renewable industry rose by 56 per cent. The most important contribution to this development within the Hamburg metropolitan region has been made by wind energy.
The Hamburg Metropolitan Region, with Europe’s second largest container port in Hamburg and a strong maritime economy, offers an excellent setting, especially for the offshore sector. The trade fair will exhibit solutions for the offshore wind industry from a broad range of globally active plant manufacturers, suppliers, planners and project managers. This will include numerous exhibitors from the ship building industry who shortly prior to WindEnergy will have exhibited at the SMM Hamburg, the leading international maritime industry trade fair. Experts from both branches will have the opportunity to exchange their offshore experiences and make contacts in new business fields. Thus the leading international trade fair for wind energy is also the largest trade fair for the offshore wind industry. “Hamburg has now firmly established itself as the leading international site for wind energy companies”, says Jan Rispens, Managing Director of the cluster agency Renewable Energies Hamburg (EEHH). “The development of the offshore wind energy industry in Germany exercises a remarkable pull, resulting in numerous companies moving to Hamburg with their management, sales and product development departments.” More information and figures about the wind energy location Hamburg: www.eehh.de.
Always a fresh wind in Hamburg
In comparison to the territorial states, Hamburg as a growing metropolis has a limited area for the generation of electricity from wind energy. Nevertheless, around 60 wind power plants within the borders of the city state generate more than 80 gigawatt hours annually. Through repowering, i.e. the replacement of outdated wind generators with more efficient turbines on higher masts, it is possible to double the amount of energy harvested from wind using the same number of plants. The municipal utility company Hamburg Energie has just carried out the first repowering of the Hanseatic city, replacing a number of older towers on the “Energy Hill Georgswerder” with a 150 metre high wind
turbine which, year for year, will meet the electricity needs of around 4,000 households. Vattenfall is currently building a state of the art wind-to-heat storage system at the Tiefstack combined heat and power plant. Here excess electricity generated by wind parks at peak times will be used to heat water, which will be fed into the district heating supply system. The wide open landscape between the North and Baltic Seas and the environs of the River Elbe provide ideal preconditions for wind power, but also for biomass use and solar power.
Media contact
Hamburg Marketing GmbH
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Matthias Beer
Projektmanager Media Relations
Tel: +49 40 300 51 582
Fax: +49 40 300 51 220
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Mail: matthias.beer(at)marketing.hamburg.de