'Don't worry about Trump crusade – buy Vestas shares': Analyst

US President Donald Trump’s latest strike against wind and solar has little practical effect, says the lead analyst for Sydbank, which has maintained its ‘buy’ recommendation for shares in Danish turbine-maker Vestas.

But in a research note today, Jacob Pedersen, head of equity research at Denmark’s Sydbank, said that these measures “only directly affect projects on federal land – and these make up only a small portion of the US onshore wind market.”

“We still see legislation that can sustain an attractive market through to 2030.”

Citing Trump’s recent social media post, where he calls wind and solar “the scam of the century,” Pedersen continued: “No one can doubt Donald Trump’s hostility and crusade against wind power.”

Only a very small proportion of onshore wind projects in the US are built on federal land, stressed Pedersen. Projects built on private land are approved at state level.

“Trump cannot directly influence these,” Pedersen noted.

But the analyst recognises the challenge the wind industry is facing in the US.

“Donald Trump really is making life difficult for the wind industry in the US. He has brought the offshore wind market to a standstill and contributed to worsened conditions for onshore wind. But the legislation and tax specifications are now in place for onshore wind, so his opportunities for further disruption appear to be limited,” Pedersen wrote.

He expects a “significant increase” in Vestas’ order intake from the US in the coming quarters.

Vestas said last week that lack of US policy clarity had held back its second quarter orders, which fell 44% year-on-year, but added that these had already rebounded in the current financial quarter.

Pedersen does strike a more cautionary note in his last paragraph: “Trump’s threats are not empty. A full stop to approvals on federal land is a more forceful approach than the industry had hoped for.”