GDF Suez To Double Renewables Projects

---

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) - French power major GDF Suez SA (EPA:GSZ) (Paris) has announced plans to double its renewable energy capacity in Europe to 16-gigawatts (GW) in the next 10 years.

The move echoes an industry-wide shift by some of Europe's leading power and energy companies to put renewables at the heart of their investment plans going forward.

The company operates just under 8 GW of renewable projects in Europe, a capacity total it wants to double by 2025. Worldwide it operates 17.8 GW of renewable energy capacity - around 15% of its total capacity -- with most of that coming from hydropower. Hydropower accounts for just over 50% of its renewables portfolio in Europe and 87% percent elsewhere. Energy from windfarms accounts for just over a third in Europe and a little over 10% outside Europe.

"Nearly half of the capacity that we are developing is in renewables, which are not marginal but totally central for GDF Suez," Deputy Chief Executive, Isabelle Kocher, told a press gathering in Paris. "Our goals are ambitious."

GDF will have approximately 21 GW of renewable capacity at the end of this year, Kocher confirmed.

Last month, GDF and French engineering firm, Alstom S.A. (Levallois-Perret, France) were chosen by the French government for a 5.6-megawatt (MW) tidal energy pilot project at Raz Blanchard, west of the Cotentin peninsula. For additional information, see December 11, 2014, article - France Picks Tidal Power Winners.

In May a consortium led by GDF Suez won the latest round of French offshore wind tenders worth an estimated €3.5 billion ($4.5 billion). The group will install and operate a 500 MW windfarm in the Le Tréport (Haute-Normandie) area and another 500 MW windfarm in the vicinity of the islands of Yeu and Noirmoutier in the Pays-de-la-Loire region of France's Atlantic coast. For additional information, see May 12, 2014, article - GDF Wins 1,000-MW French Wind Tender.

In December, Germany's largest power utility E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Dusseldorf, Germany) announced plans to split its company into two in order to capitalise on the rise of renewable energy. The main business will focus on renewables, distribution networks, and customer solutions. For additional information, see December 3, 2014, article - E.ON Goes Green, Splits Company in Two.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, three offices in North America and nine international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. To contact an office in your area, visit the Industrial Info "Contact Us" page.