The rights have been awarded to Skyborn Renewables by Finnish state-owned Metsähallitus through a reservation agreement and the former has already been granted a legally binding land use plan and a water permit for the offshore wind project
Skyborn Renewables wins five years of exclusive rights to develop the 2GW Pooki offshore wind farm in Finland. (Credit: Elke from Pixabay)
Skyborn Renewables (previously wpd offshore), a Germany-based offshore wind developer and operator, has won five years of exclusive rights to develop the Pooki offshore wind farm in Finland.
The Pooki offshore wind project will feature nearly 100 wind turbines that will have a combined capacity of more than 2GW. It will be developed in the waters of the Bothnian Bay in Finnish territory, 25km off the coast.
The rights to the project have been awarded to Skyborn Renewables by Metsähallitus, a state-owned enterprise, through a reservation agreement.
Skyborn Renewables has already been granted a legally binding land use plan and a water permit for the Finnish offshore wind project.
Skyborn Renewables CEO Thomas Karst said: “We are honoured to have secured this exclusive five-year reservation agreement to develop Pooki offshore wind farm. It is a significant milestone for Skyborn and reinforces our confidence in the potential of offshore wind in Finland.
“Working alongside Metsähallitus, we are excited with this opportunity to participate in Finland’s transition towards a renewable future.”
Skyborn Renewables aims to start development works at the Finnish offshore wind facility as early as August 2023.
According to the German company, the Pooki offshore wind farm has enormous potential for Finland’s transition to renewable energy.
The Pooki project will be built in the vicinity of the former Suurhiekka project and at an average water depth of 20m.
Metsähallitus property development director Tuomas Hallenberg said: “Finland is committed to expanding the capacity of emission-free energy through the rapid deployment of offshore wind.
“We welcome Skyborn Renewables to contribute to this development and strengthen fossil-free energy production in the country.”
The area reserved by the offshore wind developer is partly included in the Northern Ostrobothnia regional plan.
Besides, the area is reserved for wind power production in Lapland’s regional plan.
Furthermore, the reserved area is a part of legally binding land use plan on the Suurhiekka wind power generation and was given a water permit in 2012.