Norway's state-owned energy company, Statkraft, is considering a reentry into the British offshore wind market, according to CEO Christian Rynning-Toennesen. In a post-third quarter earnings presentation interview with Reuters, Rynning-Toennesen noted the attractiveness of Britain's ongoing auctions, signaling potential opportunities for Statkraft.
The CEO acknowledged the need for a reevaluation of future auction rounds in the UK following the recent auction that failed to attract new offshore wind projects due to perceived low subsidies. Despite this, Statkraft, already a major player in Britain's onshore renewables sector, sees potential in the market, leveraging its prior experience in offshore wind projects.
While the company previously divested its stakes in wind farms like Dogger Bank, Dudgeon, Sheringham Shoal, and Triton Knoll in 2017 to explore other technologies, Rynning-Toennesen mentioned that any new entry into the British market would likely involve acquiring projects from other developers.
However, Statkraft's primary offshore wind focus remains on Ireland, where it is collaboratively developing 2.2 gigawatts (GW) with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. The company is also gearing up for Norway's inaugural offshore wind auctions and recently acquired Njordr Offshore Wind in Sweden, boasting an early-stage development pipeline of 21 GW.
With a target to add 2.5-3 GW per year of new capacity from 2025, primarily in onshore wind, solar plants, and batteries, Statkraft maintains robust financial standing, with healthy cash reserves amounting to 33.8 billion crowns as of September 2023.
Despite a 46% decline in third-quarter underlying earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to 4.9 billion Norwegian crowns ($440.68 million) due to lower power prices, Statkraft's net profit rose by 15% to 4.4 billion crowns during the same period.
