UK commercial wind farm developer Amec Wind Energy has been snapped up by one of the largest electricity generators in Europe, Sweden’s Vattenfall group, for £126.6m in an all cash deal.

Vattenfall is aiming to produce 50Twh from wind power by 2030 – enough electricity for around 10 million households – and sees the UK as a key market for future growth, particularly in new offshore wind power projects.

In the UK Vattenfall already owns and operates the Kentish Flats offshore wind farm, which has a capacity of 90 MW, and has recently announced its intention to make an offer to acquire Eclipse Energy which is currently developing several wind projects in the UK with the potential of over 200 MW from renewable energy.

Amec Wind owns one of the largest wind development portfolios in the UK with a potential of 573 MW. Its onshore portfolio in the UK represents 6.5 per cent of UK consented and in-development onshore projects, while its Scottish onshore portfolio represents 9.9 per cent of Scottish consented and in planning onshore projects. Should all of the projects be realised, the net annual production of the portfolio would be approximately 2 TWh supplying electricity to approximately 400 000 households.

Vattenfall CEO Lars G Josefsson, said:

“As part of our strategy to reduce emissions, Vattenfall has very ambitious plans for renewable energy. The UK is a prime target market for future renewables growth, due to its well-functioning support systems, a deregulated and competitive market for electricity and openness to foreign investment. Vattenfall sees the economics of the UK wind sector being attractive as the UK also benefits from high wind speeds, providing wind farms in the UK with higher load factors than wind farms in much of Continental Europe.”

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