AMSC to supply turbine components to Sinovel Wind

American Superconductor Corporation, a leading energy technologies company, announced that it has received an order worth more than $18 million for wind turbine electrical systems and core electrical components from Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corporation Limited.

Under the terms of the contract, AMSC will deliver these products to Sinovel over the next 15 months. The systems and components will be deployed in 3 megawatt (MW) wind turbines that have been developed under a contract initiated with AMSC Windtec, a wholly owned subsidiary of AMSC, approximately one year ago.

In March 2007, AMSC announced that it signed a multi-million-dollar contract with Sinovel Wind under which 3 MW and 5 MW wind turbines would be developed. Sinovel is continuing to manufacture and deploy the 1.5 MW wind turbines it began producing in 2005. The 1.5 MW wind turbines also utilize core electrical components produced by AMSC.

The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) recently reported “breathtaking” growth in Asia’s wind energy markets, where over a quarter of all new capacity in 2007 was installed. China alone added more than 3.4 GW of wind energy capacity during the year, bringing its total installed capacity to more than 6 GW.

The China Wind Power Report 2007 – published jointly by the GWEC, Greenpeace and the Chinese Renewable Energy Industry Association – predicts that China could lead the world in wind energy development and play a larger role in combating climate change. The report projects China’s installed wind power capacity will grow to 10 MW by 2010 and could exceed 120 GW by 2020.

AMSCÂ’s wind turbine electrical systems and core electrical components include the companyÂ’s proprietary PowerModule power converters. They enable reliable, high-performance wind turbine operation by controlling power flows, regulating voltage, monitoring system performance and controlling the pitch of wind turbine blades to maximize efficiency.