Brazil offers excellent wind conditions, with wind energy now one of the country’s most important sources of energy. Mid 2020, the installed capacity in Brazil reached 16 GW. This represents a significant rise in recent years and has seen the wind energy sector become an increasingly important element of the Brazilian electricity market. After hydroelectric power, wind energy is now the second-largest component of the Brazilian electricity generation mix, placing the second-largest country in South America among the global leaders in the field of renewable energy.
The Nordex Group has been active on the Brazilian market since 2013, with its headquarters situated in the commercial capital, São Paulo. Since entering the market, the company has erected 436 turbines to date, with a total installed capacity of 1.3 GW, and has a further 1.15 GW currently under construction. The Nordex Group assembles the nacelles and produces concrete towers for its turbines locally at its own factories. The company also utilizes rotor blades manufactured locally within Brazil. This makes it possible to meet local value-creation requirements, which, in turn, offer better financing options for clients.
A wind turbine can generate significantly more electricity under Brazilian conditions than in many other countries. In fact, due to the excellent wind conditions, the average capacity factor of a wind power station in Brazil can reach 50 per cent – significantly above the global average. By way of comparison, in other countries, this figure is as low as 25 per cent (Source: ABEEólica). Medium wind speeds which are highly favourable for the generation of onshore wind energy can be found in the Northeast Region of Brazil in particular, where the terrain by the coast is flat. In the state of Piauí, the Nordex Group is currently constructing its largest project to date, the Lagoa dos Ventos wind farm, with 716 MW. The Group also manufactures the concrete towers of the AW125/3000 and AW125/3150 turbines in its own tower production facility, which is very close to the project site, thereby also reducing logistics costs and accelerating construction. In addition, the interior of the country and its plateaus likewise offer significant potential for large-scale projects.
Until now, the Nordex Group has installed turbines from the AW platform in Brazil. However, as the market shifts towards larger rotors with high towers, the Group is now offering other competitive turbines to their Brazilian customers in the form of the Delta4000 series. This includes the N163/5.X, which features a rotor diameter of 163 metres with a swept area in excess of 20,000m² providing high sales potential. The N163 turbines in the Delta4000 series feature different operating modes and thus offer maximum flexibility within the 5 MW range. Their operation can be optimised in line with various customer-specific requirements, such as annual yield, service life, and noise level requirements.
AN OPTIMISTIC OUTLOOK FOR BRAZIL
Over the last three years, the Brazilian electricity market has developed from an auction market to a free energy market. As a result, power purchase agreements (PPAs) continue to grow in importance. Due to the country’s excellent wind resources and the fact that, according to Brazil’s Chamber of Electric Energy Commercialisation (CCEE), wind power represents a comparatively low-cost energy source, the installed capacity from wind power is expected to continue to grow by approx. 2.5 – 3 GW per year. The Nordex Group currently has more than one thousand employees in Brazil and, with its attractive product portfolio, is ideally positioned to meet customers’ needs and fulfil project requirements.
Felipe Ferreira Ramalho
Country Manager, VP Region Brazil
Felipe Ferreira Ramalho joined Acciona Windpower in 2013 as Head of Legal Department for Brazil. In 2017, he became General Counsel for Brazil and LATAM, supporting the growth of the Nordex Group in the region, before being appointed Country Manager for Nordex Energy Brazil in April 2019.
David Lobo Sigismondi
Head of Sales Brazil
David Lobo Sigismondi has more than 10 years’ experience in the Brazilian Wind Market, joined Acciona Windpower in 2013 as Head of Sales Brazil, and since then has been an integral part of the Nordex Group Sales Team.
THE NORDEX GROUP
The Nordex Group
The Group has installed more than 29 GW of wind energy capacity in over 40 markets and in 2019 generated revenues of EUR 3.3 billion. The company currently employs a workforce of approx. 7,900. The joint manufacturing capacity includes factories in Germany, Spain, Brazil, the United States, India, Argentina and Mexico. The product portfolio is focused on onshore turbines in the 2.4 to 5.X MW class, which are tailor-made for the market requirements in countries with limited space and regions with limited grid capacity.
