France’s Alstom has signed a memorandum of intent with the government of the state of Bahia, Brazil, to install its first industrial wind turbine assembly facility in the country. The new facility, based in Bahia, will be dedicated to the assembly of wind turbines with an annual capacity of up to 300MW per year. The estimated investment is BRL50m and under the terms of the memorandum, the new wind turbine assembly facility could enter in operation in early 2011. "With the installation of its first wind turbine assembly in the country, Alstom confirms its strategy in the region and its aim to become a key player in the Brazilian wind market,” says Philippe Cochet, president of Alstom Hydro. “Brazil's energy market has great potential for the production of alternative electricity,” he adds. Alstom is present in 70 countries and has sales of EUR18.7bn.