GE adds second 107-m wind blade production line at French factory

LM Wind Power, part of GE Renewable Energy, on Tuesday said it has launched a second mold, or production line, for 107-metre (351-ft) wind turbine blades at its factory in Cherbourg, France to meet growing offshore wind industry demand.

The mold has completed the prototype phase and will now begin operations.

General Electric’s (NYSE:GE) renewable energy division also plans to expand the Cherbourg plant by building an additional hall for finishing blades after molding.

It is seeking to hire 200 new employees to bring the factory’s total headcount to 800.

The 107-m blades are components for GE’s Haliade-X offshore wind turbine, a prototype of which was commissioned in November 2019 in Rotterdam port in the Netherlands.

The Cherbourg factory, opened in April 2018, has manufactured the world’s first offshore wind turbine blade longer than 100 m. The site produced its first 107-m blade in April 2019.

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