PVOIOY is proposing to erect the largest wind offshore farm in Finland

"The planning process is advanced, and the environment impact studies are being considered. We do not have a clear idea of how long the process will last, but an investment decision will not be taken until the process concludes," said company spokeswoman Hannele Kukka.

The Finnish government’s wind energy development strategy aims to add an average of 200 MW of capacity a year to achieve its target for 2,000 MW of wind energy capacity by 2020. Its success is dependent on wind farms projects such as Kristiinankaupunki proceeding to their start-up stage.

The Kristiinankaupunki project, if realised in the expected timeframe of 2010/2011, would similarly help the government reach its target to have upto 500 MW of wind power capacity in place by 2012.

However, PVO-Innopower envisages that the project will be realised over a period of two to three years, rather than a complete roll-out in the same year.

Kristiinankaupunki is 10km from the south west mainland town of Närpiö. Under the planning proposal, the windmills would be built in waters up to 10 metres deep. The distance between individual plants is estimated at between 500 to 600 metres.

Pohjolan Voima has constructed a large-scale, 30 MW wind farm in Ajos, Kemi. The Ajos project envisaged the construction of ten 3 MW wind turbines, raised partly offshore and onshore. The budget of the project was € 50 million.

The first wind turbines were erected in autumn 2007 and synchronised to the national grid in October 2007. Phase 2 turbines were up in autumn 2008 and in operation in late 2008.

The Kemi the first and the largest wind offshore-farm wind farm in Finland.

Pohjolan Voima is a privately owned group of companies in the energy sector producing electricity and heat at cost for its shareholders in Finland.

The objective of Pohjolan Voima’s business operations is to reliably, and in the long term, supply its shareholders with competitively priced energy that has been generated by environmentally acceptable means. The Group’s business is based on the fact of being capable of building, operating and maintaining versatile electricity and heat production machinery.

www.pohjolanvoima.fi/fi/