German municipal utilities invest in offshore wind farm Baltic 1

Jul 27, 2011 - A total of 19 municipal utilities have exercised their options to acquire through a holding company a considerable stake in Germany's first commercial offshore wind power plant, Baltic 1, German utility EnBW said today.

The equity options, bought in May 2010, comprise an interest equivalent to a capacity of 24 MW in the 48.3 MW wind farm. The investment is subject to approval by the antitrust authorities, EnBW said.

Most of the municipal utilities are located in the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg. According to EnBW, the investment interest in Baltic 1 was significantly higher than the offering.

The EnBW Baltic 1 plant, which is located in German territorial waters off the coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, was built by EnBW and put on stream in May. The plant is expected to supply around 50,000 households with electricity.

EnBW will also build the second commercial German wind power plant in the Baltic Sea, Baltic 2, which will be located some 32 km (19.88 miles) north of Rugen Island and will include 80 turbines with a total capacity of 288 MW. Baltic 2 is expected to be brought into operation in 2013.

According to EnBW's CEO Hans-Peter Villis, the utility is already preparing investment models for Baltic 2.

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