Excerpt
Table Of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Chapter One
2.1 What are the driving forces behind the wind energy business?
2.2 Is the WEC business attractive?
2.3 What are the major changes and tendencies within the business and what are the reasons for these changes?
3 Chapter Two
3.1 How could Pfleiderer compete within the wind energy business?
3.2 What are the distinct resources, and which weaknesses does the company have to overcome?
3.3 From the resource perspective, which criteria are most important to Pfleiderer when selecting a new market?
4 Chapter Three
4.1 Which foreign market offers the best conditions for entry?
4.2 What decision model should we use when selecting a market?
5 Conclusion
1 Introduction
The following report deals with generating electricity via wind energy converters, one of the latest renewable resources, which have been becoming increasingly import during the past years.
One of the worldwide leading, diversified and international company within the business is the “Pfleiderer AG”. The company employs 5800 people (in 2007) and distinguished their business in two units: derived timber products and infrastructure systems.
The first one produces decorative plates, high pressure laminates and post forming elements for interior settings. This unit obtains about 52% of the volume abroad. The wind energy business is included in infrastructure systems, in addition to poles and towers and track systems. “Pfleiderer Wind Energy GmbH”, 100% subsidiary, develops and sells complete wind energy converters. In summer of 2000, the company acquired the Austrian “Windtec” to gain necessary expertise.
The long term goal is to hold a proper position in the growing offshore market in the coming years.
The first chapter deals with the driving forces behind the wind energy business, the main changes and tendencies and the reasons for these changes. The second chapter is focused on the “Pfleiderer AG”, their competencies and weaknesses. A small analysis of foreign markets and their attractiveness is shown in the third chapter.
2 Chapter One
2.1 What are the driving forces behind the wind energy business?
The “Kyoto Protocol” was one of the greatest driving forces for the wind energy and was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997. The agreement entered into force on 16 February 2005, 180 nations having ratified the treaty to date - except the USA and Australia.
It is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). The major feature of the Kyoto Protocol is that it sets binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic (caused by people) consequences for our planet earth . These amount to an average of 5% less than the 1990 levels over the five year period 2008 2012.1
The first commitment period will end in 2012 - so a new international framework needs to be negotiated and ratified to continue the stringent emission reduction, because the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted in the released reports an average global rise in temperature of 1.4°C to 5.8°C between 1990 and 2100.
According to the “Kyoto Protocol”, fossil fuels (coal, gas & oil) are another motivator in using wind energy. Fossil fuels are non renewable resources - so they are going to run short and in the future the extraction has to take place in regions where it is unprofitable or the extraction technology is lacking and the burning and use raise environmental concerns (GHG emission).
Last but not least the driving force in my opinion is the population of our planet. Recently, people have realized the consequences of global warming more than ever before. Documentaries highlighting the effect of global warming include “Deep Blue”, “The March of the Penguins” and Al Gore’s “An Inconvenient Truth”, and in school the teachers will increasingly illustrate the importance of biology, geography and the greenhouse effect and it’s consequences.
More and more people are trying to reduce their energy costs (which in turn reduces pollution) by using energy saving lamps, using as little electricity as possible and cutting down on their driving. This also has a political effect. To increase their re election chances, politicians must try to be “green” and supporting ecological and environmental projects, e.g. to build a new wind farm to generate energy for households.
2.2 Is the WEC business attractive?
Wind energy is the result of the conversion of wind power into a useful form, e.g. electricity, by using wind turbines. USA, Spain, Germany (6% of electricity production) and China have taken the worldwide lead, although wind energy is used in more than 70 countries and in some regions, wind energy already contributes 40 % or more.
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
Source: www.wwindea.org
In December 2007 the worldwide capacity of wind powered generators was 93,8 GW,
equal to more than 1% of the global electricity consumption. The 19,7 GW capacity added in the last year equals a growth rate of 26,6% after 25,6% in 2006. Currently, wind power capacity generates 200 TWh per year, but there is an estimated 72 TW of wind energy on the Earth that potentially can be commercially viable. The wind industry employs today 350.000 people worldwide, with 300.000 employees in the year 2006.2
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
Source: www.wwindea.org
Wind energy is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions when it displaces fossil fuel derived electricity (“Kyoto”). Beside the above shown growth rates and predictions, wind power have irrelevant fuel costs and relatively low maintenance costs. This means low marginal costs (usually less than one cent per kilowatt hour), but due to the size of such a project a proportionately high capital cost.
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1 Cp: UNFCC: http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php
2 Cp: World Wind Energy Association: http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/pr_statistics2007_210208_red.pdf