Due to the deepening recession, a decline in business from the US has been anticipated by India’s largest wind turbine maker, Suzlon Energy.  

At the sidelines of a press briefing to announce Q3 results, Sumant Sinha, COO – Suzlon Energy reported, “Currently, US constitutes around 30 per cent of our business but it may come down to 15 per cent in the next fiscal. However, we will keep exploring business opportunities in the Middle East, South Africa, Latin America, Sri Lanka and other countries where we find potential for wind power.”

A net loss of Rs 81.22 crores on total income of Rs 3,932 crore for the quarter ended Dec 31, 2008 was posted by the company on Friday. There were particularly three exceptional items, first being Rs 91.75 crore on foreign exchange loss on zero convertible bonds, second being Rs 233.13 crore for blade retrofit and consequential charges, and third being Rs 123.97 crore mark-to-market losses on foreign forward/option contracts.  

In spite of this, confidence was expressed by Mr. Sinha regarding the company’s growth in US with Barack Obama at the helm of White House.

Mr. Sinha said, “The US president has brought a ray of hope for the industry. He plans to improve grid connectivity while creating 5 million green jobs by investing in renewable energy. In the long run, US holds good potential.”

Furthermore, the company has also been learnt to be in talks for over 2,000 MW in orders from US, Europe, China and Australia, of which 1,000 MW is likely to be closed over the next six months. This comes as an addition to Suzlon’s exiting order book of 1,916 MW (excluding Hansen and REpower).  

Also the business from Australia might see a rise by 15 per cent in their order book; however contribution from India is seen stagnant at one third of its business in FY10.  

The company has also been named as preferred bidder for 200MW wind power project by Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation. The company hopes that it will be successful in winning the project.  

Sinha said, “We see an upswing in the industry’s growth from 2010. We expect a 50-70% growth in the next financial year.”