Top 100 Report Reflects Emerging Market Focus in Wind

Wind industry intelligence service, A Word About Wind, has released its 4th annual Top 100 Power People Report, ranking and assessing the most influential individuals within global wind.
 
Reflecting wider trends in the global wind industry, individuals in the 2015 Top 100 are increasingly involved in emerging markets, such as Asia, Africa and South America. This year, eight of the Top 100 work primarily in Asia, three in South America, and two in Africa. In total, 37 of the Top 100 work in these regions, either as their primary or secondary markets.  
 
As the wind industry matures, an increasingly broad range of players are beginning to affect the market. In this year’s report there was a sharp rise in the number of private equity experts performing crucial roles in the market. There are 12 individuals from private equity firms in this year’s Top 100, including nine who have not been featured in the report previously.
 
Private equity firms are investing more and more in this dynamic sector, which not only provides stable investments into secondary markets like Germany, but also higher risk opportunities into emerging markets such as Uruguay and Kenya.
 
While onshore wind remains the more dominant sector, with 82 of the Top 100 operating onshore and, 55 exclusively so, offshore wind is demonstrating steady growth, and the number of influential people in the sector has risen in reflection of this. Indeed, 18 of the Top 100 work exclusively in offshore this year, and 27 in both sectors. 
 
Changes to the top ten from last year also reflect these general trends. David Jones, Head of Renewable Energy at Allianz Capital Partners, for example, is number 7 this year, having been number 29 last year, emphasising the increasing influence of investors on the wind sector.
 
Other new additions to the top 10 include Ahmad Chatila, President & CEO of SunEdison, Jérôme Pécresse, CEO of GE Renewable Energy, and Jens Tommerup, Co-CEO of MHI Vestas. Anders Runevad, Group President & CEO of Vestas, has risen to number one, whilst last year’s number one, Markus Tacke, CEO of Siemens, now stands at number four.
 
The report has further evolved this year to include some crucial business insight, in the form of an exclusive interview with British tycoon Lord Irvine Laidlaw, who caused a stir in the European offshore sector this year, by reaching the €1.9bn financial close on Veja Mate.
 
“As we’re all aware, the recent economic policies of established markets such as the UK and Germany, have posed some serious challenges to the wind sector. Despite this, the industry as a whole is continuing along positive lines of growth and that’s a huge part down to the individuals in our latest report”, said Adam Barber, Director, A Word About Wind.
 
“What the sector is coming to realise, and what this report really highlights, is that the breadth and range of those individuals is growing. Increasingly, we are starting to see players from the private equity and financial services sectors influence deals. Clearly as the wind sector grows, it is becoming an increasingly serious investment proposition.”
 
“The Top 100 Power People Report provides a definitive overview of where the influence within the industry really sits and perhaps most importantly, who in these challenging economic times, is continuing to win deals and deliver.”
 
Since 2012, A Word About Wind has been publishing annual reports on the 100 most influential players in the wind energy sector. Ranked by an independent advisory board of senior industry executives, the initiative includes those working in the private sector, and through a rigorous assessment process identifies the key movers and shakers in the industry each year. It aims to recognise individuals’ achievements as well as monitoring general trends in the market.
 
The Top 100 Power People Report is published and distributed every November by A Word About Wind.  To download a copy of the report, please visit the A Word About Wind website. 
 
A Word About Wind