Page 8 - AsiaElec Week 07 2023

AsiaElec WIND AsiaElec

IKEA owner buys 15% stake in

$1.4bn Australian wind farm

756 MW site to be located near Geelong, online by late 2025

AUSTRALIA THE owner of the IKEA stores, Ingka Group, Investments, says: “Sustainability investments
has bought a 15% stake in a $1.4bn Australian are a growth sector, where doing good business
wind farm. The balance of the project is owned and being a good business comes together, and
by TagEnergy. therefore are also a core strategic priority for
The 756-MW first phase of Golden Plains Ingka Group.”
wind farm, near Geelong in Victoria, is expected Ingka Group, through its investment arm
online by the end of 2025. It is Australia’s largest Ingka Investments, has committed to expanding
permitted wind farm. The investment is Ingka its investments in renewable energy to €6.5bn
Group’s first in renewable energy in Australia. as the next step towards 100% renewable energy
The investment has been made in the €1.3bn across its supply chain.
($1.4bn) first phase of the 1.3-GW project. Since 2009, Ingka Investments has invested
Ingka Group has a goal of reaching net-zero more than €3bn into renewable energy projects
by 2050 or earlier. It had already invested in off- in wind and solar power, enabling the group to
shore wind projects off Sweden and Poland. generate more renewable energy than it con-
Stage one of the project consists of 122 Vestas sumes across its global operations. The aim is
turbines with an expected annual production of to produce 15 TWh and support the group’s
over 2,000 GWh per annum. climate footprint reduction, the company said.
TagEnergy and the original developer, West- Van der Poel said: “Sustainability investments
wind, are also preparing for the construction are a growth sector, where doing good business
of stage two (576-MW/93 turbines) and a 300- and being a good business comes together, and
MW battery storage facility that will add flexibil- therefore are also a core strategic priority for
ity and stability to the electricity grid, said Ingka Ingka Group.”
Group. In late January, OX2 of Sweden and Ingka
Ingka Group expects to invest in more renew- Investments announced they had clinched
able energy projects in Australia and elsewhere approval for a massive 1.7-GW offshore wind
in Asia-Pacific, such as China, India, Japan and farm off Halland. The Galatea-Galene project
South Korea. will be in the Kattegatt, an area of sea between
Peter van der Poel, managing director of Ingka Sweden and Denmark.™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 07 15 •February•2023