(EnergyAsia, February 15, Friday) — Canada’s Hanwei Energy Services Corp said it has been licensed by Aerodyn Energiesysteme GmbH, a leading international wind power engineering firm, to produce two versions of its aeroBlade 1.5 wind turbine blades in China.

Hanwei will be provided with the moulds, technical know-how, specifications, and support to produce the 37.5 meter and 40.3 meter versions of the 1.5 megawatt (MW) blades to be sold in China under the Hanwei brand.

Hanwei said it will pay a one-time licence fee and annual fees based on the number of moulds it purchases. The agreement is automatically renewed annually, and can be terminated by either party.

In the event of termination, Hanwei would retain the right to produce the blades, but would lose any access to engineering support or technology improvements to the blades.

Hanwei said the agreement will enable it to upgrade its current wind blade production and product offering. Aerodyn’s proven design and production techniques are highly rated in the industry and its wind blades are used throughout the world.

Hanwei has contracted Suzhou Red Maple Wind Blade Mould Co Ltd Maple, a licensed Aerodyn agent in China, to manufacture and deliver four 1.5 MW 37.5 meter wind blade moulds and one 1.5 MW 40.3 meter wind blade mould.

Each mould includes all necessary equipment, including heating, hydraulic, and vacuum systems required to construct the wind blades. In addition to supplying the wind blade moulds, Red Maple will also be contracted to provide training to Hanwei’s engineers for the construction of the moulds and wind blades.

Hanwei expects to begin training on the production of the Aerodyn wind blades in March, with delivery of the first 37.5 meter wind blade mould expected two months later. Delivery of the three additional 37.5 meter wind blade moulds is expected to be completed by June 30 while delivery of the 40.3 meter wind blade mould is expected in August.

Hanwei said it recently hired four senior executives and engineers with expertise in turbine design and supply chain management, wind blade production and control system design and construction. Three of new employees were recruited from wind power companies operating in China, including Suzlon Energy Ltd. and Sinovel Wind Technology Company.

“Our goal in 2008 is to acquire the technology and expertise required to establish Hanwei as a leading provider of wind power generation equipment to China’s growing wind power industry,” said Fulai Lang, President and CEO of Hanwei.

“Aerodyn’s wind blade manufacturing technology, moulds and training will increase our effective capacity of top quality wind blades in 2008.  The addition of the new members to our wind power team will assist us with meeting the technical and supply chain challenges of increasing production to deliver on the major contract that is part of our recently announced acquisition of Daqing Deta Electric Co. Ltd.”

Aerodyn Energiesysteme GmbH, founded in 1983, is focused entirely on the development of wind energy converters and all of their components.