AMSC Receives Second Wind Turbine Electrical Control Systems Order from Hyundai Heavy Industries

Wednesday, Nov 18, 2009

American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC), a global power technologies company, today announced that it has received a follow-on order for 30 sets of electrical control systems from Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (Korean Stock Exchange: HHI) for its 1.65 megawatt (MW) wind turbines now in production in South Korea. AMSC also has received an electrical control systems order for HHI's 2 MW wind turbine prototypes. All of the systems will be shipped to HHI by the end of May 2010.

AMSC's wind turbine electrical control systems and core electrical components include the company's proprietary PowerModule™ power converters, pitch and yaw converters, SCADA systems and other power electronics. They enable reliable, high-performance wind turbine operation by controlling power flows, regulating voltage, monitoring system performance, controlling the pitch of wind turbine blades and the yaw of the turbines to maximize efficiency.

Based in Ulsan, South Korea, HHI is the world's largest shipbuilder, a global leader in turnkey power plants and offshore projects, and a major global supplier of high voltage electrical equipment. HHI licensed 1.65 and 2 MW wind turbine designs from AMSC's wholly owned AMSC Windtec™ subsidiary in 2008. The company entered volume production of 1.65 MW wind turbines in October 2009 and plans to commence production of 2 MW wind turbines in 2010.

"HHI's investment in the wind power industry has created a new growth engine for our company," said Young N. Kim, Senior Executive Vice President and COO, HHI Electro Electric Systems. "Over the course of the past year, we have licensed high-quality wind turbine designs from AMSC Windtec, commissioned our first prototype systems and secured our initial wind turbine orders in Korea and the United States. We see tremendous growth opportunities in front of us and are expanding our wind turbine capacity to support our growth plans." HHI installed and commissioned its first reference 1.65 MW wind turbine near its manufacturing facility in Ulsan, South Korea in June 2009, less than one year after licensing the design from AMSC Windtec. In September 2009, HHI announced Wave Wind, LLC as its first wind turbine customer in the United States. HHI has invested 105.7 billion won (nearly US$90 million) to build a wind turbine manufacturing plant in Gunsan with an annual capacity of 600 MW. The company plans to expand the capacity of the facility to 800 MW by 2013.

"HHI continues to scale its manufacturing operation and execute its aggressive growth strategy in the renewable energies market," said Timothy Poor, AMSC's Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Business Development. "This follow-on order follows close on the heels of the first electrical control system order HHI placed with us in August 2009, demonstrating that its 1.65 MW wind turbines are quickly gaining traction in the marketplace." About Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd.

Founded in 1972, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) is an integrated heavy industries company with more than US$15 billion in annual sales. HHI operates six divisions: Shipbuilding, Offshore & Engineering, Industrial Plant & Engineering, Engine & Machinery, Electro Electric Systems and Construction Equipment. The company employs approximately 40,000 people at more than 30 locations worldwide. More information is available at http://english.hhi.co.kr/.

About American Superconductor (NASDAQ: AMSC) AMSC offers an array of proprietary technologies and solutions spanning the electric power infrastructure - from generation to delivery to end use. The company is a leader in alternative energy, providing proven, megawatt-scale wind turbine designs and electrical control systems. The company also offers a host of Smart Grid technologies for power grid operators that enhance the reliability, efficiency and capacity of the grid, and seamlessly integrate renewable energy sources into the power infrastructure. These include superconductor power cable systems, grid-level surge protectors and power electronics-based voltage stabilization systems. AMSC's technologies are protected by a broad and deep intellectual property portfolio consisting of hundreds of patents and licenses worldwide. More information is available at www.amsc.com.

American Superconductor and design, Revolutionizing the Way the World Uses Electricity, AMSC, Powered by AMSC, D-VAR, dSVC, PowerModule, PQ-IVR, Secure Super Grids, Windtec and SuperGEAR are trademarks or registered trademarks of American Superconductor Corporation or its subsidiaries. All other brand names, product names or trademarks belong to their respective holders. The Windtec logo and design is a registered European Union Community Trademark.

Source: Business Wire