GE partners with Green Investment for Markbygden ETT wind farm in Sweden

Wind industry news : GE has entered into a partnership with Green Investment Group of the Macquarie Group for the 650MW Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm in Sweden.

Green Investment Group along with GE Energy Financial Services has acquired the onshore wind farm from Svevind, a Swedish wind developer for an undisclosed price.

The Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm is being built in the Markbygden area, outside of Pitea in Northern Sweden.

An investment of over €300 million has been announced by GE and Green Investment Group to finance the new wind farm in Sweden.

GE Renewable Energy will supply 179 wind turbines of its 3.6MW range for the Markbygden ETT project. According to GE, the wind turbines have a rotor diameter of 137m which makes them well adapted for the kind of wind speeds and climate encountered in the area.

Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm in Sweden. Photo courtesy of Svevind/General Electric.

Commenting on the Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm, Edward Northam, the Head of Green Investment Group Europe said: “This project is a landmark transaction on many fronts and represents the new frontier in European onshore wind.

“It demonstrates that in the right market, with the right location, the right technology and the right partners, it is possible to develop and attract private capital into new onshore wind farms.”

GE and Green Investment Group have raised a funding of about €800 million for the Swedish wind farm. European Investment Bank (EIB) will support the onshore wind farm with a €180 million financing agreement.

Construction on the Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm in Sweden has commenced. The commissioning of the GE wind turbines is scheduled to be done in the second half of next year while the new Swedish wind farm is aimed to reach full operations by the end of 2019.

GE has committed to deliver a full service agreement for 20 years for the wind power project. Its grid solutions business will handle the supply of the high voltage switchgear for two collector substations at the Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm.

The Swedish wind power project has a 19-year fixed volume power purchase agreement (PPA) that GE and Green Investment Group have signed with a subsidiary of Norsk Hydro, an aluminum producer.

Pete McCabe, GE Onshore Wind Business President & CEO, commenting on the Markbygden ETT onshore wind farm said: “We are excited to have been chosen by Svevind to contribute to this massive project. Markbygden ETT marks our commitment to the Swedish onshore wind arena and extends our presence in Europe while showcasing our technical capabilities – with LM Wind Power – and project development and management differentiators.”

Markbygden ETT is part of the first phase of the Markbygden wind project, which in turn is expected to have 1,101 wind turbines to become the largest single site onshore wind farm in Europe by the time it gets completed around 2020.

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