Janom-owned Tuulivoimayhtiö Pohjoistuuli Oy sells Finnish Soidinmäki and Tyrinselkä wind farms
Finnish company Tuulivoimayhtiö Pohjoistuuli, part of janom, the Central European clean technology investment group, has sold wind farm assets in Finland to German asset investment and development company, Acquila Capital . Part of the Aquila Group, which manages €15 billion of funds for institutional investors around the world, this transaction represents a significant exit for Janom as the wind farm assets are valued at €120 million. This also validates Janom’s decision to become one of the first investors in clean energy in Finland in 2012 and signals the growing maturity of clean technology innovation in Europe.
Janom first invested in the Soidinmäki and Tyrinselkä wind farms through the Finnish company Tuulivoimayhtiö Pohjoistuuli Oy, at a time when the government wanted to encourage the development of wind farms. In 2012, installed wind capacity was only 231 MW, but this has increased significantly in subsequent years thanks to subsidies from the Finnish government and, more recently, dramatic improvements in wind farm technologies, such as arrival of turbines with larger rotors on taller towers.
Today, Finland has an installed capacity of 5,541 MW and the Soidinmäki and Tyrinselkä wind farms contribute 70 MW of installed capacity, demonstrating how wind energy can have both a local and national impact in reducing carbon emissions. Thanks to this investment in wind energy, the price of electricity in Finland is lower than in Central and Eastern Europe.
“As Europe needs to act quickly to secure its energy supplies and significantly reduce its carbon emissions to meet its net zero targets, wind farms are a crucial part of the solution,” said Andrej Srsen, CEO of janom. “Finland made an early decision to encourage investment in wind energy, which provided Janom with significant opportunities to leverage its clean technology expertise and build a strong business that has considerably developed over the last decade. This highlights the potential for clean technology investment across Europe and we are currently targeting countries in the Western Balkans, which are at a similar stage to Finland in 2012 and where the impact of this type of climate investments are currently the highest.
janom has been a pioneer in supporting clean energy solutions since 2008, investing up to €100 million in the early, risky phases of projects and businesses. This includes the construction and operation of several solar and hydroelectric power plants in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It is also a founding investor in Greenway, the largest operator of electric car charging networks in Poland and Slovakia, and janom has a stake in the British company Wattstor, which specializes in power management optimization. energy and the use of battery storage. Tuulivoimayhtiö Pohjoistuuli Oy operated the Tyrinselkä and Soidinmäki wind farms throughout their life cycle, from preparation to permit and power purchase agreement, as well as obtaining bank financing for the construction and construction supervision. She was also responsible for the day-to-day operation of the wind farms and, following the agreement of the transaction partners, Tuulivoimayhtiö Pohjoistuuli Oy will continue to manage the two wind farms for Aquila Capital.
Published: 07-11-2023
