Nordex substantiates cost-cutting targets

The Nordex Group has adopted a cost-cutting programme to respond to the continuing decline in demand and the sharp change in market conditions in its core market Germany as well as in other European countries, as already announced before. In addition to planned savings in the cost of materials and other operating expenses, it also intends to lower its personnel expenses. Nordex wants to reduce these costs by a total of EUR 45 million in 2018. Of this, the cost of materials and other operating expenses will account for EUR 21 million and personnel costs for EUR 24 million.

Against this backdrop, the company has now informed the employee representatives that it intends to reduce the number of jobs in Europe by 400 to 500 by the end of the current year. This primarily affects sites in Germany and, to a lesser extent, other European branches as well. This subject will be discussed openly and sensitively with the employee representatives. The aim is to achieve the necessary redundancies as socially acceptable as possible. The Group expects one-off expenses in a lower double-digit million range within the financial year 2017. The Group currently has some 5,200 employees around the world, of whom approximately 48 percent (2,500) are based in Germany. There will be no reduction of staff in the business segments with which Nordex wants to achieve future growth.

“The global wind power market will expand again stronger in the medium term. At the same time, however, it faces fundamental system changes, heavy price pressure and a shift in growth away from the established markets in favour of the emerging markets. Business in the European core market is currently flat to weaker and thus posing challenges for us,” says José Luis Blanco, CEO of Nordex SE. “Despite our good position and the successful measures having already been implemented, we need to work on achieving effective savings in the short term. Accordingly, capacity adjustments are painful but unavoidable. Only with competitive cost structures and efficient products we will be perceived by our customers as a trustworthy and attractive partner.”

Following the merger of Nordex and Acciona Windpower in 2016, the Group has a broad range of products, a global footprint and competitive scale. Thus it established the necessary basis for long-term success in the face of changing market conditions. One crucial aspect in this respect is the intensified development of more efficient turbines. Only last Friday, Nordex announced a substantially more efficient turbine in the 4 MW class.