Ørsted cuts profit outlook blaming slower summer wind speeds
Bad news comes as Danish renewable energy group moves to shore up balance sheet after Trump blocks key US project
Ørsted blamed lower-than-normal wind speeds in July and August for a cut in its annual profit guidance, as the troubled Danish renewable energy group prepared to ask shareholders for three-quarters of its market value in new capital.
The world’s largest offshore wind developer said it now expected earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation this year to be DKr24bn-DKr27bn ($3.8bn-$4.2bn), down from a previous DKr25bn-DKr28bn.
It said that lower wind speeds during the summer months compared with the rest of 2025 had cost it DKr1.2bn while an additional DKr300mn hit was caused by a delay of almost a year at a Taiwanese wind farm.
It last confirmed its previous guidance on August 11, raising questions about the credibility of its new management team led by chief executive Rasmus Errboe, who was promoted after its previous leader was ousted in January.
The latest bad news comes as the Danish group prepares for an emergency shareholder meeting on Friday to approve a DKr60bn rights issue made necessary by US President Donald Trump’s hostility to wind power.
Ørsted said on Thursday that it would sue his administration over a stop-work order issued last month on Revolution Wind, an almost-complete wind farm meant to provide power for 350,000 homes in the north-east of the US.
The group already faced difficulty selling down its 100 per cent stake in another offshore wind project, Sunrise Wind, prompting it to shore up its balance sheet. Its market capitalisation on Thursday was DKr84bn, close to a record low.
Ørsted’s rights issue is backed by its two largest shareholders, the Danish state and Norwegian oil and gas group Equinor, which own 50 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively. Norway’s $2tn oil fund, which has a 3 per cent stake, has also backed the capital raising, which is expected to take place at a big discount.
The Danish group — which has previously warned, including in 2021, that low wind speeds have hurt profits — once had the ambition to become the world’s first renewable energy supermajor.
But it has been hit by major issues at its US projects that have already led to writedowns, as well as rising interest rates and problems in the supply chain.