World’s largest maker of wind turbines axes 600 staff as it swings to a loss and cuts outlook.

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Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems, the world’s largest maker of wind turbines, said it swung to a second-quarter net loss and cut its outlook for 2010 as it felt the impact of its very low order intake last year.

The company shares tumbled as much as 20 percent in Copenhagen on the news.

“The result confirms that turbine prices and pre-payment conditions are under pressure,” Patrik Setterberg, analyst with Nordea Bank AB in Copenhagen, wrote in a note. “Even a strong order intake will not compensate for the weak result.”

Its second-quarter loss amounted to 119 million euros ($153 million), compared with a profit of 43 million euros a year earlier. The results that fell short of market expectations. Sales dived 17 percent to 1 billion euros.

The company also said around 300 staff in Denmark will lose their jobs. A similar number of contract workers won't have their contracts renewed and some factories will introduce work-sharing schemes.

Global investment in wind power slowed during the economic slump in the U.S. and Europe, lowering prices paid for wind farms, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

The Danish wind power firm now sees a 2010 operating profit margin of 5 to 6 percent and revenue of 6 billion euros, against a previous forecast of 10 to 11 percent and 7 billion euros.

"The downgrade is made because expected, but still not concluded orders for delivery to the USA, Spain and Germany will now take place at such a late date in 2010 that they will not be recognised as income this year," Vestas said.