Prior to Vestas, Mr Sutton worked in the energy management and efficiency industry for Honeywell and Otis in Australia before joining Siemens Australia as the National Manager, Energy Performance Contracting in 1999.

In 2003, he became President and CEO of Siemens Building Technologies Korea. In 2006, he was promoted to oversee Siemens Building Technologies in Hong Kong and Macau. He was then promoted to Senior Vice President in Siemens (Switzerland) in 2008, and was responsible for the global business segment for Building Automation Solution. Mr Sutton was also President of the Australasian Energy Performance Contracting Association in 2002 and 2003.

Mr Sutton holds both an MBA and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management from the Melbourne Business School (Australia). He also holds a Bachelor in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering from the University of Tasmania (Australia).

Where does your interest in clean energy stem from?

My first job after graduating from engineering school was to work on building construction sites in dusty plant rooms, engineering, programming and commissioning air conditioning control systems. Initially the control of testing and cooling systems was only done for comfort when energy was cheap, but, as energy became more expensive so did the importance of efficient energy management.

I stayed in the energy management and energy efficiency industry for 20 years involved in both project execution, sales, account management, marketing and general management across Australia, Korea, Hong Kong and with global responsibility based in Switzerland.

In 2009 I had the opportunity to join Vestas and become part of the clean energy movement, and I am now running the Asia Pacific business based out of the regional headquarters in Singapore.

Vestas is not only a clean energy provider but also walks the talk through our ‘as green as it gets’ program for our own use of clean energy, energy efficiency, waste reduction through recycling and sustainability initiatives such as reforestation, to name a few.

What top two steps does the industry need to take to be cost competitive with traditional energy generation? How can they be achieved?

Wind, oil and gas is Vestas’ vision, which expresses the ambition of making wind an energy source on a par with fossil fuels.

Wind power accounted for the largest, second-largest or third-largest share of new power capacity in the European Union and America in 2008, 2009 and 2010. Wind power has become a natural part of the modern energy mix. Among renewable sources of energy, wind power is currently the best means of ensuring that the many national climate targets are reached because it is fast to install, predictable over the life of the wind farm, and an independent energy source which is safe and clean.

Vestas expects that, if the necessary political decisions are made on a national and international level to expand the power grid, the share of wind power relative to the total electricity production can be increased from about 2 percent today, to at least 10 per cent by 2020.

What has been the greatest achievement of your sector over the past five years?

Vestas continues to put wind power at the top of the global energy agenda. The fact is that wind power not only benefits the environment, but it is the epitome of a new clean-tech industry. Wind power and Vestas has created new jobs in all parts of the world in the last five years, acting as an independent catalyst for growth and prosperity.

Where do you see the wind sector going in the short and long term?

The 2009 financial crisis has matured the wind business and it is now becoming a mainstream energy solution. Customers and banks have therefore set high demands and requirements to manufacturers to meet and deliver in terms of the following three areas in the short and long term:

1. To provide the best business case for certainty in terms of wind projects’ viability and long-term returns of investment 2. The ability to ensure the lowest cost of energy by supplying the right technology and the best wind turbine for the site 3. Fostering closer partnerships through willingness to work together with external stakeholders for optimal clean energy solutions.

I believe these are the basis for our competitive positioning and only the market will determine whether the above three requirements are met by new and existing manufacturers.

What are the top two government incentives/policy measures you would like to see implemented today? Why?

Countries provide varying regulations, depending on market and political factors currently affecting their constituents. Therefore, a challenge that many markets face is the creation of a policy and regulatory environment that enables business case certainty for wind power development.

Most importantly, policy directives – no matter what mix of measures they come in – need to be transparent, long-term and certain. A stable, transparent and investment-friendly regulatory framework is essential to create investor confidence and ensure investments in renewables.

For wind power, specific framework components could include:

1. The establishment of incentives and schemes such as a feed-in-tariff system and/or a renewable portfolio standard that sets clearly defined technology-specific energy capacity targets 2. The implementation of purchase power agreements, as well as other financial incentives, to attract investments. 3. The creation of a ‘one-stop-shop’ authority in order to streamline administrative procedures for permitting and approvals, as well as ensure the development of corresponding grid and transmission infrastructure.

All these components are vital to enable wind industry development and I would urge the policy makers and government departments concerned to consider these in their development of renewable energy.

What one piece of advice would you give new entrants to the clean energy industry?

It’s a fast-moving industry and there is a technology and reliability race happening. The need for quality, reliability and continual technology improvements are integral to being competitive in this industry. If new entrants are not agile and unable to keep bringing new technology forward then their fate will be uncertain.

What promising project/technology is your company currently developing?

At Vestas, we employ over 1,900 people in our research and development teams globally. We’re continuously looking for different solutions and materials that will bring even more value to our customers and lower the cost of energy, both today and in the future. For example, currently we are researching stealth wind technologies. Some sites (certain offshore ones, for example) are not suitable for wind turbines because they would interfere with radar systems. Stealth technology would open up these sites for use. At the moment, a 44 meter blade is being tested in the United Kingdom. Vestas is also engaged in researching floating foundations for offshore wind power plants. We are presently working on creating floating foundations suitable for water depths of over 30 metres.