CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, March 25, 2004 --/World-Wire/-- More than 3,000 government, industry and financial leaders will converge on Chicago for the first global wind energy event ever to be held in the U.S.: the Global WINDPOWER 2004 Conference and Exhibition (Chicago, March 28-31st) (1). This large gathering takes place at a key point in the development of the U.S. and global wind industry.

The wind energy industry celebrated a near-record breaking year in 2003, adding more than 8,000 megawatts (MW) of wind energy capacity in more than two dozen nations. The new wind sector investment is worth $9 billion, up from $7 billion in 2002. The total world capacity of 39,294MW provides enough to power the equivalent of 9 million average American homes.

At the start of 2004, however, the expiration of the wind energy production tax credit in the United States threatened to stall growth in what has been the world's fastest-growing energy source for the past several years.

"Wind power has hit the big time; it is a big business and has moved to the mainstream, largely driven by rapid growth in a small handful of countries. The sector is in the midst of global expansion, and the global wind market could reach $150 billion by 2012. The next decade will see a broadening of the global market to cover new countries in Europe and across countries such as Australia, Japan, South America, North Africa, Canada, China, and Brazil," said Corin Millais, CEO of the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).

"The United States now has the second largest installed wind capacity of any nation in the world, but we recognize that clear, consistent policies are the key to extending that record of accomplishment," explained Randall Swisher, executive director of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). "The industry has proven over the past several years that it can ramp up quickly to meet demand, as evidenced by the figures in our first-ever annual industry rankings of wind energy development. With stable policy support, investments would flow on an even larger scale into the U.S. wind energy market."

To provide perspective on the size of the American wind industry, AWEA has issued its first ever annual industry rankings of wind energy development in the United States. The rankings (as of December 31, 2003) include the following:

States with most wind energy installed, by capacity (MW)

1. California - 2,043 MW
2. Texas - 1,293
3. Minnesota - 563 MW
4. Iowa - 471 MW
5. Wyoming - 285 MW

Largest wind farms operating the U.S. (MW)
1. Stateline, Oregon-Washington - 300 MW
2. King Mountain, Texas - 278 MW
3. New Mexico Wind Energy Center, New Mexico - 204 MW
4. Storm Lake, Iowa - 193 MW
5. Colorado Green, Colorado - 162 MW
6. High Winds, California - 162 MW

Leading owners of wind energy installations in the U.S. (MW):
1. FPL Energy - 2,700 MW
2. Shell Wind Energy - 393 MW
3. AEP - 310 MW
4. PPM Energy - 201 MW

Manufacturers that sold most wind turbines in the U.S. in 2003 (MW sold):
1. GE Wind with 51.8% market share
2. Vestas with 21.3% market share
3. Mitsubishi with 11.9% market share
4. NEG Micon with 9.4% market share
5. Gamesa with 3.3% market share

Utilities/power companies that buy most wind power (MW purchased)
1. Southern California Edison purchases the output from 1,080 MW of wind power
2. Xcel Energy purchases the output from 829 MW of wind power
3. Pacific Gas & Electric Co. purchases the output from 680 MW of wind power
4. PPM Energy purchases the output from 606 MW of wind power
5. TXU purchases the output from 580 MW

"Wind power potential remains grossly untapped in the Asian region. In the region's fast growing economies there is an intense demand for new generation capacity based on clean and green energy sources. India is the fifth-largest wind power generator in the world and the potential for wind energy in India is around 45,000 MW. It is expected that 10% (10,000 MW) of the proposed addition in energy capacity of 100,000 MW in the next 10 years would come from the renewable energy sector and more predominantly from the wind energy sector. Wind power has come of age and the next 20 years will see greater and enhanced deployment of wind electric generators as a clean and green source of power generation in India and other Asian countries. Against adding some 500 MW per year we should be looking at capacity additions of at least 2,000 to 3,000 MW per year. This is possible only if India starts developing a national Renewable Energy legislation immediately," said Mr Sarvesh Kumar, Chairman of Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association (IWTMA).

(1) Global WINDPOWER 2004 is sponsored by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) and over 40 other national wind energy groups.

(2) The Global WINDPOWER 2004 Conference and Exhibition will run from Sunday, March 28 through Wednesday, March 31. The conference will be attended by energy and environment ministers, industry CEOs and senior executives from three continents and several leading financial industry analysts. Global WINDPOWER 2004will feature the largest exhibit hall and display of wind energy technology in U.S. history, with over 200 exhibitors and pavilions, and 146,000 square feet of spectacular exhibition space. The exhibit hall will be open to the public on Tuesday, March 30 from 4:00pm to 6:00pm.

Executives from many of the top-ranked companies will be featured in the plenary sessions that will kick-off each day of the conference. Plenary participants include U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy Kyle McSlarrow, Brazilian Vice Minister of Mines and Energy Maurício Timno Tolmasquim, GE Energy - Wind Segment CEO Steven Zwolinski, PPM Energy CEO Terry Hudgens, Worldwatch Institute President Christopher Flavin, Simmons & Company International President Matt Simmons, and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

(3) The plenary sessions on each day of the conference will be followed by a media availability featuring the panelists from each plenary. Each media availability will be Webcast LIVE (audio only) and stored on the AWEA Web site for later review. For more information, or to register for the Webcasts, visit the AWEA Web site atwww.awea.org/newsroom/webcast.

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), formed in 1974, is the national trade association of the U.S. wind energy industry. The association's membership includes turbine manufacturers, wind project developers, utilities, academicians, and interested individuals. More information on wind energy is available at the AWEA web site: www.awea.org.