European wind turbine manufacturers must consolidate to achieve global competitiveness, according to Henrik Andersen, chief executive officer of Vestas Wind Systems A/S. His call for regulatory support from Brussels highlights industry concerns that EU antitrust policy hinders the creation of large-scale cleantech companies.
Antonio Cammisecra, CEO of ContourGlobal, echoed this view. "We must create the Airbus of renewables," he said, citing the aerospace giant—formed as a state-backed consortium in the 1970s—as a model for strategic green sectors. Cammisecra said Europe's goals of greater energy independence and lower consumer bills require a "very large conglomerate" to rival Chinese competitors.
The push for consolidation stems from Chinese manufacturers' grip on critical cleantech markets. Chinese suppliers account for an estimated 90 percent of solar photovoltaic module installations across the EU. Last year, Chinese companies, led by Goldwind, installed 120 gigawatts of wind power capacity globally, representing over 70 percent of total installations.
The wind power industry faces similar pressure, even as Europe hosts leading manufacturers including Vestas, Nordex and Siemens Gamesa. José Manuel Entrecanales, CEO of Spain's Acciona, which holds a 47 percent stake in Germany's Nordex, said he supports merging his group with a major competitor to form a "wind power Airbus," arguing that EU leadership in decarbonization depends on greater scale.
The "Airbus of renewables" concept first gained traction around 2017, coinciding with the merger of Siemens and Gamesa and early French-German efforts to build a bloc-wide electric vehicle battery ecosystem. The idea gained new urgency in 2024 following the Draghi Report, which recommended Brussels foster consolidation in cleantech and other strategic industries to boost global competitiveness.
That same year, Luca de Meo, then CEO of Renault, proposed that automakers form an Airbus-style consortium to share development costs for small electric vehicles.
Geopolitical pressure has sharpened the debate. Strained EU relations with both China and the United States, combined with the bloc's push for strategic autonomy, have elevated domestic industrial capacity in critical sectors as a policy priority.
Brussels' economic security agenda has focused primarily on reshoring, public procurement and protection of technology and know-how. Private sector leaders argue those tools fall short. Dries Acke, deputy CEO of Sol, said, "There is no such thing as a sustainable cleantech manufacturer. without scale."
Replicating the Airbus model presents real obstacles. Initial Franco-German talks took a decade to reach commercial operations, and the program required more than $20 billion in state funding—a level of government commitment that is difficult to replicate today.
EU antitrust rules have not blocked all cleantech mega-mergers, but large deals face stringent conditions. Veolia's €13 billion consolidation with Suez in 2022 required heavy remedies to satisfy regulators. Cammisecra called antitrust regulation a European "obsession," arguing that current geopolitical tensions demand collaboration over competition.
The European Commission updated its merger guidelines in April 2024, and the wind turbine sector is weighing how those changes could affect future consolidation. Industry leaders remain critical of the review process for large-scale deals.
