AMSC Receives Second Wind Turbine Electrical Control Systems Order from Hyundai Heavy Industries
DEVENS, Mass., Nov 18, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC), a global power technologies company, today announced that it has received a follow-on order for 30 sets of electrical control systems from Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (Korean Stock Exchange: HHI) for its 1.65 megawatt (MW) wind turbines now in production in South Korea. AMSC also has received an electrical control systems order for HHI's 2 MW wind turbine prototypes. All of the systems will be shipped to HHI by the end of May 2010.
AMSC's wind turbine electrical control systems and core electrical components include the company's proprietary PowerModule™ power converters, pitch and yaw converters, SCADA systems and other power electronics. They enable reliable, high-performance wind turbine operation by controlling power flows, regulating voltage, monitoring system performance, controlling the pitch of wind turbine blades and the yaw of the turbines to maximize efficiency.
Based in Ulsan, South Korea, HHI is the world's largest shipbuilder, a global leader in turnkey power plants and offshore projects, and a major global supplier of high voltage electrical equipment. HHI licensed 1.65 and 2 MW wind turbine designs from AMSC's wholly owned AMSC Windtec™ subsidiary in 2008. The company entered volume production of 1.65 MW wind turbines in October 2009 and plans to commence production of 2 MW wind turbines in 2010.
"HHI's investment in the wind power industry has created a new growth engine for our company," said Young N. Kim, Senior Executive Vice President and COO, HHI Electro Electric Systems. "Over the course of the past year, we have licensed high-quality wind turbine designs from AMSC Windtec, commissioned our first prototype systems and secured our initial wind turbine orders in Korea and the United States. We see tremendous growth opportunities in front of us and are expanding our wind turbine capacity to support our growth plans."
HHI installed and commissioned its first reference 1.65 MW wind turbine near its manufacturing facility in Ulsan, South Korea in June 2009, less than one year after licensing the design from AMSC Windtec. In September 2009, HHI announced Wave Wind, LLC as its first wind turbine customer in the United States. HHI has invested 105.7 billion won (nearly US$90 million) to build a wind turbine manufacturing plant in Gunsan with an annual capacity of 600 MW. The company plans to expand the capacity of the facility to 800 MW by 2013.
"HHI continues to scale its manufacturing operation and execute its aggressive growth strategy in the renewable energies market," said Timothy Poor, AMSC's Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Business Development. "This follow-on order follows close on the heels of the first electrical control system order HHI placed with us in August 2009, demonstrating that its 1.65 MW wind turbines are quickly gaining traction in the marketplace."
About Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd.
Founded in 1972, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) is an integrated heavy industries company with more than US$15 billion in annual sales. HHI operates six divisions: Shipbuilding, Offshore & Engineering, Industrial Plant & Engineering, Engine & Machinery, Electro Electric Systems and Construction Equipment. The company employs approximately 40,000 people at more than 30 locations worldwide. More information is available at http://english.hhi.co.kr/.
About American Superconductor (NASDAQ: AMSC)
AMSC offers an array of proprietary technologies and solutions spanning the electric power infrastructure - from generation to delivery to end use. The company is a leader in alternative energy, providing proven, megawatt-scale wind turbine designs and electrical control systems. The company also offers a host of Smart Grid technologies for power grid operators that enhance the reliability, efficiency and capacity of the grid, and seamlessly integrate renewable energy sources into the power infrastructure. These include superconductor power cable systems, grid-level surge protectors and power electronics-based voltage stabilization systems. AMSC's technologies are protected by a broad and deep intellectual property portfolio consisting of hundreds of patents and licenses worldwide. More information is available at www.amsc.com.
American Superconductor and design, Revolutionizing the Way the World Uses Electricity, AMSC, Powered by AMSC, D-VAR, dSVC, PowerModule, PQ-IVR, Secure Super Grids, Windtec and SuperGEAR are trademarks or registered trademarks of American Superconductor Corporation or its subsidiaries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. The Windtec logo and design is a registered European Union Community Trademark.
Any statements in this release about future expectations, plans and prospects for the company, including our expectations regarding the future financial performance of the company and other statements containing the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "will" and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include: we have a history of operating losses, and we may incur losses in the future; a significant portion of our revenues are derived from a single customer, and a reduction in business with this customer could adversely affect our operating results; adverse changes in domestic and global economic conditions could adversely affect our operating results; changes in exchange rates could adversely affect our results from operations; our common stock may experience extreme market price and volume fluctuations, which may prevent our stockholders from selling our common stock at a profit and could lead to costly litigation against us that could divert our management's attention; if we fail to implement our business strategy, our financial performance and our growth could be materially and adversely affected; we may not realize all of the sales expected from our backlog of orders and contracts; many of our revenue opportunities are dependent upon subcontractors and other business collaborators, and a reduction in orders stemming from these companies could adversely affect our operating results; our products face intense competition, which could limit our ability to acquire or retain customers; our success is dependent upon attracting and retaining qualified personnel and our inability to do so could significantly damage our business and prospects; and our international operations are subject to risks that we do not face in the U.S., which could have an adverse effect on our operating results. Reference is made to these and other factors discussed in the "Risk Factors" section of the company's most recent quarterly or annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, any forward-looking statements included in this press release represent the company's views as of the date of this release. While the company anticipates that subsequent events and developments may cause the company's views to change, the company specifically disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the company's views as of any date subsequent to the date this press release is issued.
SOURCE: American Superconductor Corporation
American Superconductor Corp. (NASDAQ: AMSC) Jason Fredette, 978-842-3177 Director, Corporate Communications jfredette@amsc.com
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