Dutch pension investor APG has teamed up with HgCapital’s Vasa Vind to build Sweden’s largest onshore wind power project – and says it will take a “leading role” in initiating new projects.
APG and Vasa, a portfolio company of HgCapital’s Renewable Power Partners 2 fund, said they have started construction of the 288MW Åskalen project in Jämtland, central Sweden.
The project will comprise 80 Vestas V136 3.6MW turbines and total construction investment will amount to approximately €300m, and commissioning will be completed in 2020 delivering a total power production close to 1TWh/year, equivalent to 50,000 Swedish households.
APG said the cost to build Scandinavian wind power generation is among the lowest in Europe. “The peninsula has strong and steady winds, and its scarce population density allows construction at a larger scale and with higher towers than in most European countries.”
APG’s owner, civil service pension fund ABP, and the PPF APG pension fund, will be the owners of the facility.
“We consider it important to use our position as one of the world’s largest pension funds,” said ABP Chair Corien Wortmann-Kool. “We do this to achieve the climate goals of Paris and contribute to the transition to renewable energy.”APG said that the project’s “industrial scale and excellent wind resource” means it will be “one of the most efficient wind farms in Europe.”
Åskalen is one of the first projects to be launched after Sweden extended its green certificate system for renewable power earlier this year.
“Scandinavian power is a strategic area for our infrastructure investments in renewables.”
The investment will contribute to ABP’s goal of increasing its investments in renewable energy fivefold (to €5bn) by 2020.
Vasa will be responsible for construction and project management while Vestas has a 20-year maintenance contract.
Swedbank, Roschier and Sweco advised APG on the transaction. DNB Markets, White & Case, Advokatfirman Oebergs and DNV-GL advised Vasa and HgCapital.
“Our clients’ aim is to increase strongly their investments in renewable energy while contributing to their risk-adjusted financial returns, therefore APG will take a leading role in initiating new projects,” said Dirk Hovers, Senior Portfolio Manager Infrastructure at APG. “Scandinavian power is a strategic area for our infrastructure investments in renewables.” Link
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