DUSSELDORF, Germany, April 25 (UPI) -- In a move with Norwegian oil and gas company Statoil, Germany's E.ON said it was ready to build more wind energy developments off the nation's coast.
E.ON said Monday it plans to invest at least $1.3 billion in developing the Arkona wind energy project off the coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea through a joint partnership with Statoil. With the move unveiled, the German company becomes the first tapped to operate wind farms in the German waters of both the North and Baltic seas.
Once in full operation, the Arkona wind farm will generate energy through its 60 turbines to meet the energy demands of up to 400,000 homes. Up to 400 people will help build it and, once it's established, will provide for around 50 permanent jobs.
Michael Lewis, the chief executive in charge of E.ON's renewable division, said the project marks "a big step toward realizing our goal of making renewables truly competitive."
For Statoil, the company last year set a path toward investing in up to $200 million in renewable energy by buying into startups targeting opportunities in wind power, energy storage, smart grids and other energy-related technology. In May, the company set up a partnership with United Wind to look for small-scale energy solutions in the United States.
Irene Rummelhoff, a vice president in charge for part of the renewable strategy at Statoil, said the E.ON partnership only adds to that momentum.
"This investment is in line with our strategy to gradually complement our oil and gas portfolio with profitable renewable energy and other low-carbon solutions," she said in a statement.
