EWE director Thomas Neuber: “The future of energy lies offshore.”
EWE increases stake in Germany’s first offshore wind farm alpha ventus
Oldenburg, Germany, 11 December 2008. Oldenburg-based power utility EWE is upgrading its stake in Germany’s first offshore wind park alpha ventus. As of 11 December 2008, EWE AG is increasing its shareholding in Deutsche Offshore-Testfeld- und Infrastruktur-GmbH & Co. KG (DOTI) from 33.33% to 47.5%. The stock held by the other shareholders, E.ON Climate & Renewables and Vattenfall Europe New Energy, will be reduced to 26.25% each accordingly. The three power utilities founded DOTI GmbH in 2006 to implement the alpha ventus project.
“EWE will take over operational management and monitoring of alpha ventus under contract to DOTI GmbH. We see our larger shareholding as a corresponding gain in knowledge and know-how, especially with regard to the experience we expect to gain from alpha ventus for future projects,” said Dr. Thomas Neuber, EWE Director of Procurement and Production. The Oldenburg-based utility has been associated with wind power generation in the Ems/Weser/Elbe region for decades, and power generated by 12 wind power facilities in the region is fed into the national grid. “Partly with the interest of the region at heart, EWE is interested in acquiring an even larger stake in alpha ventus and thereby, jointly with our project partners, paving the way for offshore wind power in Germany,” Dr. Neuber said.
With effect from 1 October 2008 EWE also took over the overall project management of alpha ventus. In accordance with the division of functions the joint project team is continuing to plan and build the wind park. During the realisation phase of this pioneering project the actual costs of some trades have been found to differ from the planned costs. This will lead to an increase in overall investment costs from the projected € 189m to around € 250m as of now. This includes the grant offered by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety and currently under EU approval scrutiny. By increasing its shareholding in DOTI GmbH, EWE is bearing the higher investment costs of alpha ventus and consistently pursuing its strategy of stepping up its commitment to offshore wind power.
“The future of energy lies offshore. We see great potential in energy generated on the high seas and will therefore continue to expand this segment in the EWE Group,” said EWE’s Neuber. Offshore wind farms were a growth market from which EWE aimed to benefit, he said. In addition to alpha ventus the Oldenburg-based power group is to participate in the Riffgat high-sea wind park that is to be built 15 kilometres northwest of the North Sea island of Borkum in 2012. At the end of October EWE set up jointly with the ENOVA group the offshore wind park company RIFFGAT GmbH & Co. KG.
EWE, with its head office in Oldenburg, is one of Germany's largest utility companies. Its range of goods and services includes electricity, gas and water supplies, energy and environmental technology, gas transportation and trading, and telecommunications and information technology. Thus, EWE provides a range of classical and innovative services at one source. EWE’s network infrastructure is characterised by a high level of technical quality, security of supplies and economically efficient operation. EWE extended its core competences at an early stage to include the operation of complex networks and provide comprehensive control and telecontrol engineering know-how in a future-oriented, multi-service offering. In addition to its established business activities in northern Germany, EWE also conducts business successfully in eastern Germany, Poland and Turkey. The EWE Group employed around 4,700 staff members at the end of 2007 and recorded sales of € 4.7bn.
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