The European Investment Bank, or EIB, is set to provide €63 million for the construction and operation of two new wind farms in Austria with a total capacity of approximately 43.6 megawatts (MW), according to an EIB statement on Friday.
Austrian wind power producer Windkraft Simonsfeld AG, which has been successfully running wind farms in Austria and Bulgaria since the end of the 1990s, will operate the Prinzendorf III and Powi V wind farms.
The overall capacity of the wind farms operated by Windkraft Simonsfeld currently amounts to 202.5 MW.
The bulk of the financing for the wind farms of €40.9 million will be backed by a guarantee from the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and will go directly to Windkraft Simonsfeld.
The remaining loan of €22.1 million will be provided by Erste Bank and guaranteed by the EIB, while Windkraft Simonsfeld will contribute €21 million for the wind farms.
This is the second time Windkraft Simonsfeld has benefited from EU investment program funding. Under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), a €48 million financial agreement was made possible in January 2018 to build three new wind farms with Windkraft Simonsfeld in Austria.
“The promotion of sustainable, competitive and secure sources of energy is a key policy objective and, as the EU climate bank, a priority sector for EIB financing,” Andrew McDowell, the EIB vice-president responsible for operations in Austria, was quoted in the statement.
“This new EU support for Windkraft Simonsfeld will help to make two new wind farms a reality, bringing clean energy to thousands more households in Austria,” said Paolo Gentiloni, the European Commissioner for the Economy.
By Sibel Morrow
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr