Vestas - Industrial wind resizing or bursting bubble?

Vestas, the world’s largest industrial wind turbine manufacturer, announced yesterday that they will reduce their workforce by over 2300 employees; 182 of those are in the United States. The Denmark based company also stated that expiration of the United States federal renewable energy tax credit (PTC) could cause an additional 1600 US layoffs. Other factors Vestas cited include changes in ‘political demand’, the international economic downturn resulting in lower consumer electrical demand, and competition from China.

The Coalition for Sensible Siting finds Vestas’ statements about the US federal PTC significant.  Vestas' concerns about US renewable energy tax money demonstrates one way American tax payers are underwriting European debt. The article also confirms that the demand for wind turbines is political; not an actual demand for additional electrical generation.

Citizens and legislators rallied behind Minnesota’s 2^nd District Congressman John Kline allowing the December 31, 2011 expiration of the Section 1603 cash grants in lieu of production tax credits. The cash grants were about $1 million per industrial turbine. There is no evidence that this largess using tax money was stimulating anything beneficial to tax payers and electrical rate payers. Citizens celebrated the expiration of this failing major cash stimulus. 

Coverage of Vetas’ downsizing shows that wind industry promoters and some politicians continue to wring their hands.  Scientifically baseless concerns include EU “energy safety” which is usually spun in the US as “independence from foreign oil”.  Since almost none of the US electrical supply is generated using oil from any source, the “energy independence” marketing campaign has always been a hoax.  Industrial wind lobbyists also lament that installing fewer wind turbines means humans will fail to reduce electrical generators’ atmospheric CO2 emissions.  No independent study has ever shown any evidence that wind turbines can or will reduce CO2. The CO2 “concern” is yet another marketing ploy by folks who want tax and rate money shoveled their way.

Coverage of the Vestas fallout also noted that the price of carbon on the EU carbon exchange dropped by half. Given the stunning level of corruption and ongoing investigations into the EU carbon exchange, halving the value of this politically created fairy-dust trading scheme does not seem all bad.

Is the Vestas downturn the 21^st century version of the Dutch tulip bubble that burst in the 1600s?  At least the bulb buyers got flowers for their money.