Vestas to freeze new commercial activity in Russia over Ukraine conflict

Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas Wind Systems A/S (CPH:VWS) will cease any new commercial business activities in Russia in the wake of the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

Responding to the “indefensible” war initiated by the Russian government, the Danish firm’s new operations in Russia will be halted until further notice. The turbine manufacturer said in a LinkedIn post on Wednesday that the decision had been taken after its operations were exposed to severe disruption due to the turmoil, affecting production, transportation, construction and services.

“The existence of this violent conflict is inexcusable and untenable,” Vestas said.

The wind turbine maker noted that its service operations in both Ukraine and Russia have been impacted by the conflict, adding that it will carry out servicing activities to the extent it can ensure the safety of the service crews.

“The situation continues to develop fast, and in addition to the above, we continue to assess what further impact the war and any sanctions could have on Vestas,” the company said.

In Russia, Vestas operates a blade production facility in Ulyanovsk and a nacelle assembly line in Dzerzhinsk. A significant share of its turbine orders in the country comes from a partnership between Finnish utility Fortum Oyj and Russian nanotechnology company Rusnano.

According to its latest financial report, Vestas delivered 473 MW of wind turbines for projects in the Russian Federation in 2021, up from 390 MW a year back.

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