Ignitis switches on 50-MW wind farm, gets EIB loan for pumped hydro

Lithuanian utility Ignitis Group (VSE:IGN1L) on Friday said the 50-MW Silesia I wind farm in Poland of its subsidiary Ignitis Renewables has started commercial operations.

The wind farm is located in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, southwestern Poland, near the border with the Czech Republic and represents an investment of about EUR 75 million (USD 82m). Consisting of 14 wind turbines of 3.6 MW each, the facility is expected to generate 122 GWh per year. The electricity will be sold under a contract for difference (CfD) tariff of EUR 78 EUR per MWh, inflation-indexed annually.

Ignitis said it has now reached a green generation installed capacity of 1.4 GW. Its ambition is to achieve 4 GW–5 GW by 2030.

To support this target, as well as Lithuania’s renewables energy goals and the region’s energy independence, the company this week also secured EUR 105 million of long-term financing from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the fifth unit of the Kruonis pumped storage hydroelectric power plant. The fifth unit will add 110 MW to the plant, increasing its capacity to 1,010 MW. The project is expected to cost EUR 150 million and to be completed at the end of 2026.

The EIB loan is for a period of up to 16 years.

(EUR 1 = USD 1.093)

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