Statkraft granted licence for Kjøllefjord wind park


 
 
"Norway is in the process of becoming a serious windpower nation. The windpower plans in Kjøllefjord are a result of Statkraft's wide-ranging commitment to start using new renewable and environmentally friendly energy solutions," says Group CEO Bård Mikkelsen.
 
More wind parks
Kjøllefjord wind park may become the company's third large windpower development. The first was Smøla wind park, whose initial construction phase (40 MW) was opened by HM King Harald of Norway last autumn. Statkraft also has plans to start Smøla building phase II (110 MW) this autumn, with completion in 2005. Hitra wind park (55 MW) is under construction and will be completed in 2004. In addition, the company has recently applied for a licence for a wind park in Vadsø municipality and is also preparing several applications, including some for locations in Finnmark. These projects make a considerable contribution towards achieving the authorities' ambitions to generate 3 TWh of windpower by 2010.  Provided everything goes according to plan, Statkraft's wind parks will generate a total of 2 TWh by 2010, equal to the electricity requirements of around 100,000 households.
 
Large wind park in Finnmark
Kjøllefjord wind park is planned to be built on Mount Gartefjell in Lebesby municipality and will have a total installed output of 40 MW. The number of windmills will depend on the type and size that are optimal when the wind park is to be built. The windmills will have an output of 2-5 MW. If 2 MW windmills are chosen, 20 windmills will have to be installed. If the 5 MW size is chosen, eight windmills will be sufficient.  Windmills with outputs between these two figures may also be relevant.
 
The power generated - around 155 GWh - is equivalent to the electricity consumed by around 7,500 households. Each windmill tower will be 70-100 metres high and its rotor will have a diameter of 76-110 metres depending on the type of windmill chosen. The wind park will provide 2-3 jobs in the area during the operating phase.
 
Earliest construction start in two years
Construction work on the Kjøllefjord wind park will not start until at least the autumn of 2005. The development costs are estimated to be around NOK 320 million.
 
Statkraft is Norway's largest producer of electricity. The company's own production capacity comprises an average of around 42 TWh annually - or around 1/3 of the hydropower generated in Norway. The Statkraft Group has approximately 2,100 employees, including those in Skagerak Energi and Trondheim Energiverk.  The company is Norway's biggest land-based taxpayer. Statkraft has ownership shares in BKK, Agder Energi and Fjordkraft, all Norwegian power companies.  In size, the Statkraft Alliance is the third largest in the Nordic production market and the second largest in the Norwegian consumer market.