Statkraft Opens First Swedish Windfarm

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Norwegian energy firm Statkraft AS (Oslo) is celebrating the first fruits from its 1 billion-euro ($1.40 billion) deal with Swedish forestry and timber company Södra (Vaxjo) with the opening of its first Swedish windfarm.

The company has commissioned the Em onshore windfarm, which has a capacity of 9.2 megawatts (MW), outside Mönsterås in southeast Sweden. It is the first step in Statkraft's ambitions to build 600 MW of onshore windfarms on Sodra forestry land in southern Sweden. Construction of the windfarm's four turbines began last June.

In September 2009, the 1 billion-euro deal saw Statkraft take a 90% share in Södra's fledgling wind power operation, Södra Vindkraft AB, with the goal of constructing a potential portfolio of 300 installations on Södra property. Sodra, which is owned by 52,000 forestry owners who control vast amounts of forestry land in southern Sweden, is the country's largest producer of green energy. For additional information, see September 9, 2009, article - Statkraft Looks to Billion-Euro Deal for Swedish Wind Power.

"We are excited to be opening our first windfarm in Sweden, which is a core market for Statkraft's focus on land-based wind power," said Jon Brandsar, Statkraft's executive vice president. "At Em, the conditions for wind power are in place, with good wind resources, easy connection to the grid, and regulatory framework conditions which make it lucrative to invest in pure energy."

Sodra also commissioned six wind turbines of its own in the same region, capable of producing about 32 gigawatt-hours (GWh) a year, enough to power approximately 6,000 homes.

Gustaf Tibblin, CEO of Södra Vind, said: "By building these windfarms next to the mill in Mönsterås, we have been able to optimise our excellent coastal position in terms of the amount of wind available, and we have also used the existing infrastructure and built on it."

Statkraft is also working with forest owner SCA to develop wind power in central Sweden. Statkraft SCA Vind AB has applied for six windfarm licenses in Jämtland and Västernorrland ,with a planned total installed capacity of 1,140 MW.

Statkraft owns and operates three windfarms in Norway and one in Wales. Statkraft and its partner, Statoil ASA (NYSE:STO) (Stavenger, Norway), started construction on the 317-MW Sheringham Shoal offshore windfarm off the coast of Norfolk last July.

IIR's Renewable Energy Database provides extensive coverage on the wind energy, geothermal, hydroelectric, landfill gas-to-energy and utility-scale solar power plants throughout North America, and is now expanding coverage across the world.

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