SEB Bank has issued a record EUR 45 million financing to E Energija Group developing a wind farm

SEB bankas and E energija have signed a long-term credit contract of EUR 45 million for E Energija’s planned construction of a 68.9 MW wind farm in the District of Telšiai by the year 2022. The park is unique in that it is developed jointly with General Electric and the wind park is planned to be the highest one in Lithuania.

Impressive that the wind farm capacity of 68.9 MW will be achieved with only 13 innovative General Electric wind turbines, and the amount of green electricity generated by the park will cover the demand of the annual electricity consumption of nearly 80 thousand households. These will be the most powerful wind turbines in Lithuania: the capacity of a single turbine will be 5.3 MW, while currently the most powerful turbine in Lithuania is only 3 MW. The wind farm will also stand out in height - the tower with the wing will be as high as 220 meters. For comparison - a restaurant in Vilnius TV tower is located at the altitude of 165 m.

The economic parameters are no less impressive - the park will not require any state support or subsidy, the technical and economic parameters of the wind turbines will allow the park to operate and be competitive at market conditions. Electricity generated by the wind farm will be purchased by Estonia utility company -Eesti Energia, which operates on the global market under the name Enefit. This is the first long-term 10-year maturity power purchase contract in the region.

"Investments in wind energy are important not only in terms of climate change and the energy sector transformation, but also politically, aiming at the reduction of energy dependence, at meeting the needs of the future consumption growth in Lithuania (both due to industrial development and transport sector electrification), ensuring low prices for households and competitive energy supply to Lithuania’s industry. Undoubtedly, this will also contribute to the success of the economic recovery following the COVID19 pandemic. Thus, banks can play a very important role by providing targeted and competitive financial solutions, therefore, for SEB Bank, one of the main providers of financing for wind farms in Lithuania, financing this type of clean energy is a priority. SEB Bank is happy to contribute to the financing of such a special project and is grateful to the E Energija team for their professional cooperation. Also, we are very pleased with our new business relationship with General Electric and Eesti Energia”, says Vilius Juzikis, Member of the Management Board of SEB Bank and Director of the Corporate Banking Department.

The commitment of the European Union (EU) states is the transition, by 2050, to a climate-neutral economy, which is only possible with a complete transition to renewable energy sources. In Lithuania's climatic conditions, wind energy is a competitive and cheapest as well as widely available energy source in Lithuania, therefore it should play the most important role in achieving the above-mentioned EU energy goals and ensure the required amount of electricity produced locally.

V. Juzikis says this is especially important, knowing that part of the energy currently generated in Lithuania comes from fossil fuel power plants, which will be closed in the long run - without wind-generated power plants, the Baltic countries would become dependent on electricity imports. The planned development of wind energy will enable Lithuania to become one of the leading countries in the EU and one of the greenest in terms of electricity production.

Currently, the power capacity of wind energy in Lithuania is 534 MW, and the electricity they produce accounts for more than 10 percent of the total energy consumption. Compared to other countries in the region and the EU average, we seem very much alike. It is planned that the number of wind farms in Lithuania should increase significantly during this decade, and their capacity by 2030 will reach almost 2,200 MW.

“Such a wind-farm project without the state subsidies is the first one not only in Lithuania, but also in the Baltic States, and  its financing has been a big challenge. We are happy that SEB Bank has trust in us and in our partners General Electric and will significantly contribute to the financing of the project. The mission of the E Energija Group to play a significant role in reducing the impact of the energy sector on climate change by implementing increasingly larger-scale projects has also played an important role, as today socially responsible businesses tend to contribute to the development of such projects”, said Gediminas Uloza, the General Manager of E Energija Group.

The first works of the 68.9 MW E Energija’s wind farm in Telšiai started in June this year, and the installation of the first turbines will start in the spring of 2021. It is planned that the wind farm will start its commercial operations early in 2022.