OSLO: Aker ASA announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Aker Horizons AS, and Aker Offshore Wind Operating Company AS have entered into a cooperation agreement with Statkraft AS to explore possibilities for collaboration on offshore wind power projects on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS).
Aker Horizons, Aker Offshore Wind and Statkraft will work together and utilize their complementary skills and expertise to explore the possibility to develop and operate large-scale offshore wind parks in Norway.
By harnessing excellent offshore wind resources in the North Sea, the Parties aim to export green electricity to European customers. The agreement reinforces Aker Offshore Wind’s ongoing efforts in being a driving force for the industrialization of offshore wind in Norway and internationally and solidifies Aker Horizons’ role as a leading planet-positive investment company.
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“Statkraft has been making clean energy possible for over a century. A partnership that couples Europe’s largest renewable energy producer with Aker’s 180-year track record and industrial expertise, especially on the NCS, has the potential to redefine Norway as an energy nation. Norway’s leading offshore industry, including a strong supplier industry, means we already have the building blocks and capabilities in place to be at the forefront of the energy transition. We look forward to working with Statkraft to develop the offshore wind industry further, reducing emissions and creating new jobs for the future,” says Øyvind Eriksen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aker ASA and Chairman of Aker Horizons.
“By entering a cooperation with Aker Horizons and Aker Offshore Wind, we are exploring a value-creative opportunity in Norway. We have expertise in the development and operations of wind power and have previously been engaged in offshore wind in the UK. Strong growth, falling technology costs and a changed competitor landscape indicates that offshore wind will take a larger role in the European energy transition; therefore, we see the cooperation with Aker Offshore Wind as an opportunity for substantial value creation and accelerate Europe’s green transition,” says Statkraft Chief Executive Officer, Christian Rynning -Tønnesen.
The partnership will explore the opportunity for bottom-fixed offshore wind at Sørlige Nordsjø II (SN2), for which the Parties will establish an integrated project team, equally split between Aker Offshore Wind and Statkraft, for joint preparation and submission of an acreage application and further development activities.
Aker Offshore Wind, being a pure play offshore wind developer with an ambition to become a full-fledged independent power producer (IPP), will play a leading role in the construction phase.
As the largest provider of green electricity in Europe, Statkraft will lead the operations phase and the marketing of the green electricity.
Aker Horizons, Aker’s investment platform dedicated to investing in, incubating, and developing companies within renewable energy and decarbonization technologies, will play an active role in the overall management of the cooperation, adding value with its expertise within financial structuring, strategy project execution and deploying digital solutions.
Together, the Parties are evaluating export possibilities to Europe and the UK and electrification of oil and gas assets for possible value adding offtake.
“The cooperation agreement comes at a time when we see large global ambitions for offshore wind development and a window of opportunity to put Norway at the forefront of a growing global industry. For SN2, we have already identified and will leverage key differentiators, including Statkraft’s renewable energy track record and the Aker ecosystem’s deep domain expertise. Capabilities and experience across the Aker Horizons portfolio, which we significantly strengthened with the recent addition of Mainstream Renewable Power, will be mobilized to support Aker Offshore Wind in the development and implementation of the project. We look forward to working together with Statkraft towards our common goal of using one of the fastest growing energy sources in the world to reach a carbon free future,” says Kristian Røkke, Chief Executive Officer at Aker Horizons.
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