Vestas lays off 114 in U.S. on soft demand for wind turbines
By Brent Hunsberger, The Oregonian
February 11, 2010, 2:06PM
Vestas Americas, the sales and service arm of Danish wind-turbine maker Vestas Wind Systems, cut 114 positions on Wednesday, or 6 percent of its North American work force, because of softening demand for renewable energy projects, a spokeswoman confirmed.
Among the cuts were 15 positions at its North American headquarters in Portland, said Aili Jokela, the firm's vice president of communications, today. None of the layoffs affected its four factories in Colorado, Jokela said.
The news comes as a setback to efforts by Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski and Portland Mayor Sam Adams to get Vestas to expand in Portland. The company last year delayed plans to move into larger headquarters in the city.
Portland and state officials had offered as much as $31.5 million in direct incentives for the expansion. And Kulongoski flew to Europe in October partly to meet with Vestas executives to push the project.
Adams and a spokeswoman for Kulongoski both said they continue to work with the company. Adams used the opportunity to call on Congress to pass a national energy policy.
"The urgency of enacting a national energy policy couldn't be greater right now," Adams said. "I never like to hear about layoffs but I’m grateful there were only 15 in our market."
Jokela said she could not comment on what the layoffs meant for Vestas' expansion plans. But she said the company expects demand to pick up later this year.
"We actually are very positive for the future with wind energy," Jokela said. "We think the market will turn around in 2010 and 2011."
Vestas in Denmark on Wednesday cut its 2010 revenue and operating profit forecasts, saying customers were having trouble securing financing for renewable projects. It said it now expects orders to materialize so late in the year that its revenue won't reach 8 billion Euros.
Vestas Americas initially planned to break ground last year on a 400,000-square-foot headquarters, expandable to 600,000 square feet, along Portland's South Waterfront.
On Thursday, Adams said city incentives for an expansion remain, depending on which site Vestas selects. "It’s more options than just the site on South Waterfront," he said.
On Wednesday, Vestas said it expects to add 1,300 employees worldwide to bring its overall employment to 22,000. Before the layoffs, Vestas employed 1,800 in North America, including just more than 400 in Portland.
-- Brent Hunsberger
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2010/02/vestas_lays_off_114_in_us_on_s.html
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