SCA, Statkraft to Build Wind Farms in Sweden
Date: 17-Sep-07
Country: SWEDEN
Author: Anna Ringstrom and Robert Sennerdal
The two firms also signed a ten-year deal under which
Statkraft would supply electricity to SCA.
State-controlled Statkraft will provide the 16 billion crown
(US$2.39 billion) funding while SCA, Europe's largest maker of
corrugated packaging and hygiene products, would grant land for
the seven farms in Sweden's Vasternorrland and Jamtland.
In a statement, the companies said they were aiming for the
farms to produce 2,800 GWh of wind power electricity per year,
and that the sites would now be subject to environmental
assessments and planning.
"We have made an inventory of our 2-1/2 million hectares of
forest land in northern Sweden in order to find locations with
favourable conditions for wind power production," said Kenneth
Eriksson, President of SCA Forest Products, in the statement.
SCA said there were no conflicts with other stakeholders at
the designated forest sites.
"Statkraft's goal is to increase production of renewable
energy. The agreement with SCA is therefore a major step in the
right direction and entirely in line with our strategy,"
Statkraft said.
SCA's acting Chief Executive Lennart Persson told a news
conference ensuring long-term electricity supply and
contributing to environmental friendly energy production were
the reasons for SCA to enter the project.
"The basic industries have been trying to find new kinds of
energy and increased energy supply to the country. We want to
ensure our electricity supplies and it is today important to be
able to do that in an environmentally friendly way," he said.
In a separate statement the firms said they had signed a
10-year deal for Statkraft to supply 500 GWh of power annually
to SCA's Swedish activity within the forest industry, a deal
that SCA said to have "competitive prices".
"This agreement is an important step towards a well
functioning Nordic market for long term contracts with the
industry," Statkraft said.
The firms said the joint venture would also study the
feasibility of expanding hydropower in the regions Jamtland,
Vasternorrland and Vasterbotten, in four waterways.
In a separate statement, SCA said it would invest 800
million crowns in its Ortviken paper mill in northern Sweden to
increase production, an investment it expects to complete by
spring 2009.
The mill produces paper for newspapers and magazines and
uses 1.8 TWh of electricity per year. SCA's Swedish industrial
operations consume nearly 3 TWh per year.
Persson said SCA's earnings would not be affected by the
construction of the windfarms.
"It can be 10 years before SCA makes money on this," he
said.
