Hanwha's Q Energy sheds light on European wind expansion plans

Q Energy Solutions SE, the Berlin-based energy division of Korean enterprise Hanwha Solutions Corp (KRX:009830), today announced plans to expand its wind energy business, currently focused on France, to new markets such as Germany, Portugal and Spain.

The company, which presently has over 1 GW of installed or in-development wind capacity in France, intends to set foot into its new markets over the next months, it said in a press release.

Q Energy noted that it is not just looking for new project sites but is also preparing to launch four wind repowerings of 56 MW in total this and next year. The firm’s first repowering project, Souleilla-Corbieres, is currently nearing completion.

According to Sang Chull Chung, CEO of Q Energy, hybrid projects including wind and energy storage systems will be a strategic business for the company going forward.

Meanwhile, Q Energy continues to be involved in offshore wind, having co-developed the 500-MW Saint-Brieuc facility off the coast of Brittany. It is among the pre-qualified bidders for three French offshore tenders totalling 1.75 GW on the Atlantic coast and in the Mediterranean Sea, and is getting ready to take part in more European tenders in countries such as Germany and Portugal, it said.

Earlier this year, the Hanwha Group acquired one of the world’s largest shipbuilders, namely Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), now called Hanwha Ocean, and this creates opportunities for synergies with Q Energy. To be more precise, the latter hopes to make use of the business’ wind turbine installation vessels (WTIV).

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