Suzlon group wins 120 MW wind turbine order in US

Suzlon Wind Energy Corp, the North American subsidiary of Suzlon Group, has won a contract to supply wind turbines for a 120 MW power project in western United States.

The 120 MW site will be powered by 57 Suzlon S97-2.1 MW turbines, specifically designed to improve energy yields in low to moderate wind regimes, Suzlon said in a release today.

The S97 wind turbine is part of Suzlon's newer S9X suite that features turbines that address increased customer demand for low to medium wind-speed machines.

Suzlon said procurement and manufacturing of the turbines have commenced immediately on contract execution while infrastructure and foundation work for the project will begin in the second quarter of 2012 (April-June FY13).

Delivery of the wind turbines will start in the third quarter and construction of the wind turbines will start soon after the first turbines arrive on site. Commissioning of the power plant is scheduled for the last quarter of 2012 (October-December FY13), Suzlon said.

A 120 MW project could deliver enough green energy to power up to 36,000 homes, according to estimates by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

''Suzlon is really pleased to be installing a substantial project utilising the S97 – a turbine based on the workhorse track record of our current installed fleet,'' said Andris Cukurs, CEO of Suzlon Wind Energy Corporation. ''Averaging over 98 per cent availability across our US fleet, Suzlon is confident that these 57 turbines will meet those robust availability standards expected by our customers.''

''The US is a very important market for us and this order underscores our strong technology and service offering alongside our robust track record. As we enter into what is expected to be a year of record growth for the US, we believe we are among the most competitively positioned to capitalise on this opportunity,'' Tulsi Tanti, founder, chairman and managing director of Suzlon Group, added.