The making of a windfarm - in pictures

A wind energy fair in Husum, northern Germany, September 2010 Photograph: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images

Wind turbine towers are welded at the DMI Industries plant in Stevensville, Ontario, Canada, June 2011
Photograph: Norm Betts/Getty Images

Artur Carmo, of Martifer Energy Systems SGPS SA, inspects the inside of a wind turbine stem at the company's manufacturing centre in Oliveira de Frades, Portugal, August 2010 Photograph: Mario Proenca/Getty Images

Employees at the ABB AG factory work on a components for a wind turbine generator at the company's plant in Tallinn, Estonia, November 2011 Photograph: Simon Dawson/Getty Images

A wind turbine is assembled at the Guodian United Power Technology Company in Baoding city, Hebei province, China, June 2011 Photograph: Feng Li/Getty Images

Blades for Vestas Wind Systems A/S wind turbines are stored at the company's factory in Tianjin, China, September 2010
Photograph: Nelson Ching/Getty Images

Finished wind turbine blades stored ahead of shipping at the Siemens AG plant in Aalborg, Denmark, November 2011
Photograph: Timothy Fadek/Getty Images

Wind turbine blades ready to be transported from a factory in China's northern Hubei province, September 2010 Photograph: Peter Parks/AFP

Massive three-pronged legs made from steel at the Cuxhaven Steel Construction GmbH facility in Cuxhaven, Germany, are prepared for transportation to the North Sea, where they were to be used in Germany's first offshore windfarm Photograph: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Parts of a Vestas Wind Systems A/S turbine await assembly at the Sacramento Municipal Utility District wind power plant in Rio Vista, California, November 2011 Photograph: Ken James/Getty Images

A Suzlon Energy wind turbine during construction at the Edison Mission Group Big Sky windfarm in Ohio, Illinois, September 2010
Photograph: Daniel Acker/Getty Images

A crane hoists the hub and blades for a 1.5 megawatt wind turbine being built at International Power Canada's Plateau windfarm in Ontario, Canada, September 2011 Photograph: Norm Betts/Getty Images

Still in Ontario, a worker guides the hub and blades of the wind turbine into position Photograph: Norm Betts/Getty Images

Sturt Daley, site manager, stands atop a wind turbine nacelle at Capital Wind Farm in Bungendore, Australia, December 2010 Photograph: Ian Waldie/Getty Images

Still in Australia, a wind turbine operates at the Capital Wind Farm Photograph: Ian Waldie/Getty Images

Acciona turbines operate at the NaturEner USA LLC Glacier windfarm in Ethridge, Montana, August 2010
Photograph: Andrew Harrer/Getty Images

Wind turbines belonging to China Resources New Energy Group spin in Shantou, Guangdong province, China, January 2011 Photograph: Forbes Conrad/Getty Images

An electric substation at a wind turbine location in Shantou Photograph: Forbes Conrad/Getty Images