Energy · Profile from Energy Research Companion
Vestas
The largest Western maker of wind turbines (Copenhagen: VWS), headquartered in Aarhus, Denmark, with a large US business: blade and nacelle factories in Windsor and Brighton, Colorado, US sales and service run from Portland, Oregon, and the United States as one of its largest single markets for onshore orders and service. Vestas began as a village smithy in 1898, sold its first wind turbines in 1979, nearly died twice — when the California wind market collapsed in 1986 and in the 2008–12 overcapacity crisis — and lost ~€1.57bn in 2022 when fixed-price contracts met inflation. It then raised prices, cut platform churn and returned to record revenue of ~€18.8bn in 2025, with a combined turbine and service backlog of ~€71.9bn (company, Feb 2026). In 2025 US policy uncertainty froze its American order book for a quarter; the 2025 tax law then set a hard deadline that pulled US orders forward. Its story is the book's cleanest case of scale without pricing power.
At a glance
- Founded
- 1898 (Hans Søren Hansen buys a blacksmith's shop in Lem, western Denmark); Vestjysk Stålteknik A/S ("Vestas") formed 1945; first wind turbines sold 1979; refounded as Vestas Wind Systems A/S after the 1986 suspension of payments (1987)
- Headquarters
- Aarhus, Denmark; US: Vestas-American Wind Technology, Portland, Oregon (sales and service), factories in Windsor (blades) and Brighton (nacelles), Colorado
- Ownership / structure
- Public, Nasdaq Copenhagen (VWS) since 1998; no controlling shareholder; Mitsubishi Heavy Industries a significant holder since the 2020 offshore buy-out (~2.5% at the time, company)
- Leadership (2026)
- Henrik Andersen (Group President and CEO since Aug 2019, previously CEO of Hempel and CFO/COO at ISS); Anders Runevad (chair, CEO 2013–19, verify chair start 2022)
- Segments
- Power Solutions (onshore and offshore turbine sales: project and supply-only contracts); Service (long-term service agreements on the installed fleet)
- Scale
- Revenue ~€18.8bn, EBIT before special items ~€1.07bn (5.7% margin), net profit ~€0.78bn, order intake ~16.3 GW (2025, company); Q2 2026 revenue ~€4.7bn (+26%), EBIT margin ~9.4%, order intake ~3.3 GW, turbine backlog ~€36.0bn, service backlog ~€40.9bn (company, 12 Aug 2026); ~37,000 employees (2025, reported)
- Installed base
- Turbines in ~88 countries, roughly ~185–190 GW installed cumulatively (company claim, verify), of which ~150 GW+ under service contracts (company claim, verify)
- Signature moves (incl. failures)
- First turbines and the Danish wind industry (1979); California collapse and suspension of payments (1986); NEG Micon merger (2004); Colorado factories and the US bet (2008); crisis, restructuring and job cuts (2012); MHI Vestas offshore JV (2014) and buy-out (2020); 2022 losses, price rises and Russia exit; V236 offshore platform (2023–26); the US policy shock (2025)
9 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
1979
First Turbines and the Danish Wind Industry
Strategy pivot / technology bet (entry into wind turbines)
1986
California Collapse and Suspension of Payments
Restructuring or bankruptcy (suspension of payments) / failure
2004
NEG Micon Merger
Acquisition or merger (all-share merger of Denmark's two largest turbine makers)
2008
Colorado Factories and the US Bet
Construction / market entry (US manufacturing)
2012
Crisis Restructuring and Job Cuts
Restructuring / failure
2014
MHI Vestas Offshore JV and 2020 Buyout
Joint venture (2014), then acquisition of the partner's 50% (2020)
2022
Losses Price Rises and Russia Exit
Restructuring / pricing reset / divestment (Russia)
2023
V236 Offshore Platform
Technology bet
2025
US Policy Shock
Regulatory or legal action (external shock) and the company's response