Xzeres Wind hires high-powered CEO

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Xzeres Wind Corp. on Thursday tapped the former CEO of one of it’s biggest competitors, sending a signal that it intends to become a big player in the fast-growing market for small wind energy systems.

Frank Greco will take over at the Wilsonville-based wind turbine manufacturer (OTCBB: XWND) after six years as CEO of Southwest Windpower Inc. The Flagstaff, Ariz.-based competitor was the market leader at the end of 2009 with systems totaling 11,700 kilowatts of capacity sold worldwide, according to the American Wind Energy Association.

Xzeres, by comparison, is a new player in the market.

The company was formed this spring after Portland-based hedge fund Core Fund Management LP acquired out of bankruptcy the assets of Newberg-based manufacturer Abundant Renewable Energy, an established brand in the industry that struggled financially.

Those assets were transferred into a publicly-traded shell company which it renamed Xzeres Wind.

In May the company disclosed it had raised around $4 million from investors on its quest to tackle a small wind market that is expected to double to more than $400 million by 2013.

Chairman David Baker said in hiring Greco the company now has "arguably the most valuable executive in the entire small wind industry."

"Frank has all of the experience, skills, expertise and leadership to enable Xzeres Wind Corp. to become one of the most successful small wind power systems companies in the industry," Baker said in a news release.

While at Southwest Windpower, Greco led the launch of two new product platforms while expanding the company into new facilities and markets, including establishing operations in Germany and forming a joint venture in China.

His initial priority at Xzeres will be to grow sales both domestically and globally, as well as expand the company’s product portfolio.

Xzeres now offers 2.5-kilowatt and 10-kilowatt wind turbine systems (including models for marine applications), but executives in May said the company hopes to expand its offering to larger products, filling a market gap for products between 10 kilowatts and 1 megawatt.