Vestas Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of Denmark-headed global wind power technology provider Wind Systems A/S (Vestas), is strengthening its collaboration with Modvion AB through a recent directed share issue. Modvion is a Swedish wood technology company that is developing wooden towers for wind turbines.
Vestas Ventures made its first investment in Modvion in February 2021. Vestas Ventures invests in startup companies with the aim to challenge industry standards and accelerate Vestas’ journey towards becoming the global leader in sustainable energy solutions.
Our collaboration with Modvion holds significant potential to help accelerate the energy transition and further increase sustainability within the wind energy industry. Modvion’s towers are lighter than traditional ones and have a modular product architecture which aligns well with Vestas’ strong focus on modularization. The construction facilitates transportation to logistically challenging places and allows for increased turbine hub heights, potentially contributing to a reduction in the cost of energy, said Bo Svoldgaard, SVP and Head of Innovation and Concepts at Vestas.
Reduce carbon footprint
Modvion’s wooden towers radically reduce emissions from wind turbine tower manufacturing operations. The modular design also enables higher towers to be built at a lower cost. The carbon dioxide (CO2) absorbed by the trees during their growth period remains stored in the wooden tower, enabling climate-neutral wind energy.
We are excited for the opportunity to support the world’s leading wind turbine manufacturer in reaching its ambitious sustainability targets and offering their customers even more climate-smart wind energy. To tackle the climate crisis, we need more renewable energy and increased use of sustainable, wooden constructions, and Modvion’s technology enables both, said Otto Lundman, CEO of Modvion.
Vestas has expressed interest in exploring the use of Modvion’s technology in its product line as part of its efforts to support customers in delivering more sustainable energy solutions.
Vestas’ new investment will support Modvion’s rapid production scale-up, with a long-term goal of integrating wooden towers in Vestas’ offerings to accelerate market adoption.
Modvion has an ongoing collaboration with global energy company Enel Green Power and has signed Letters of Intent (LoI) for wind turbine towers with international power company Vattenfall Group, as well as with Rabbalshede Kraft and Varberg Energi.
In April 2020, Modvion’s first wooden tower was erected outside Gothenburg, together with Chalmers University of Technology and the Swedish Wind Power Technology Centre, a 30-meter-tall research tower.
