COPENHAGEN: Danish wind turbine maker Vestas revenue rose 18 percent to 11.3 billion kroner (1.52 billion euros, $1.7 billion) in the first quarter as the group reported its highest order intake ever in the January to March period.
Together with a strengthening US dollar, the 47 percent increase in orders prompted the group to raise its yearly revenue forecast to 7.5 billion euros, up from a previous estimate of 6.5 billion. “This has been a historically strong first quarter on revenue, margins, order intake, and return on invested capital,” chief executive Anders Runevad said in a statement.
Net profit jumped to 56 million euros from two million euros, partly due to a fall in losses on financial items. The results were “strong across the board,” Sydbank analyst Jacob Pedersen told news agency Ritzau, adding that he thought the company would post “record results” for the year. Shares in Vestas were 3.1 percent higher in midday trading on the Copenhagen bourse, where the main index was down by 0.3 percent.