Turbine manufacturers face high commodity and logistics costs
European turbine makers continue to face headwinds
The outlook for renewable energy has never been brighter. So why are so few manufacturers profiting from booming demand for wind turbines?
As governments commit to net-zero strategies, many have laid out plans for accelerating the rollout of renewables to decarbonise their national power supplies. However, despite the growing demand for wind turbines, manufacturers have continued to see profits fall as commodity prices and logistics costs rise. Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas generated more than €5.5bn ($6.3bn) in revenue for Q3 2021 and built its backlog of orders to 24GW of capacity, valued at €19.3bn. However, its Ebit before special items fell to €325mn from €412mn in Q3 2020, while overall profit halved from €290mn to €123mn. “The quarter was… characterised by supply chain instability and rising energy prices as we
Also in this section
28 November 2025
The launch of the bloc’s emissions trading system in 2005 was a pioneering step, but as the scheme hits 21 its impact as a driver of decarbonisation is still open to debate
18 November 2025
Vicki Hollub, president and CEO of Occidental, has been selected as the 2026 recipient of the Dewhurst Award, the highest honour bestowed by WPC Energy. The Dewhurst Award celebrates exceptional leadership, groundbreaking innovation and a lifetime of significant achievements in sup-port of the development and advancement of the energy industry.
11 November 2025
Transition policies must recognise that significant industrial demand for carbon will continue even as economies hit net zero
6 November 2025
After years of pursuing ideologically driven climate leadership, Western powers are now stepping back under mounting political pressure and rising populist opposition—prompting concern essential climate action could be sidelined
