ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book looks at the creation of the world's wind market and the rise of the mainly European wind companies – led by Denmark's Vestas — to global status. It also looks at the entry of big global engineering giants – like Germany's Siemens and the US's GE – into the business as it gained momentum, and the entry into the business of the big power utilities. The book discusses the growth in the sector in the US, which, although hardly a hawk in terms of climate negotiations, has consistently been the world's single largest market for renewable energy. It also discusses some of the big new players, namely Brazil, where the industry is seeing record capacity factors, rock-bottom prices and breakneck growth; and India, whose power mix and growing economy gives it enormous potential.
