From 2nd to 4th April 2019, WindEurope, the European Association of Wind Energy, will present its “WindEurope Conference & Exhibition” in Bilbao Exhibition Centre. This exhibition is the most important event in this speciality in Europe and one of the flagship events for the association, with an average of 8,000 professional participants attending from all over the world and over 400 companies from 50 exhibiting countries.

On 13th July, institutional representatives, leading companies in the Basque Country and the Basque Energy Cluster joined Wind Europe representatives at the press conference held at Bilbao Exhibition Centre, where the reasons for selecting Bilbao for the Wind Europe event were discussed highlighting the importance of the industrial fabric in this area.

Arantxa Tapia, the Basque Government Minister for Economic Development and Infrastructures, stressed, “today we start our journey to Bilbao-Basque Country in April 2019. I'm sure we will be able to design and hold a first-class event that will be the benchmark for the European industry in the wind energy sector”.

In this regard, Arantxa Tapia expressed, “I would like to take this opportunity to highlight the role of the Basque Energy Cluster in bringing together, directing and lubricating, if I can put it that way, the companies in this sector. The Basque Energy Cluster in collaboration with the Basque Energy Board and SPRI, works to strengthen the value chain of the Basque wind sector. The aim is to continue to supply systems, components and services of high added value to the main promoters and manufacturers of wind turbines worldwide”.

Giles Dickson, CEO of the European Wind Energy Association, explained the decision to select Bilbao for this event, referring that “the Basque Country has made a conscious decision to invest in wind power and is a clear example of economic strength and potential for the wind energy industry, a sector which generates 330,000 jobs throughout Europe. The region has become a very important industrial energy hub, which is creating real economic value around this sector as well as new jobs. Although in itself this is not an area rich in natural wind energy resources, it is benefiting in an extraordinary way from producing and exporting equipment and technology throughout Europe and other international markets. In addition to this, Spain is a leading production centre with 22,000 jobs and thousands of millions in export income. After several difficult years, the Spanish wind energy market has come back to the map and having selected Bilbao proves that confidence is back in the industry”.

The Chairman of the Spanish Wind Energy Association AEE (Asociación Empresarial Eólica), Juan Diego Diaz, stressed, “over 20 industrial centres owned by AEE members in the region not only make Bilbao the ideal candidate in the region to host this event but also highlight the Basque Country's commitment to our industry.AEE considers the Basque Country a strategic development area for the domestic and international wind energy industry and the most important focus of offshore activity in Spain”.

Paris was the last city to host the “WindEurope Conference & Exhibition” which comes to Amsterdam this year as the meeting point chosen for this event from 28th to 30th November.