The Danish energy group behind the world’s largest offshore wind farm has shrugged off a disappointing first quarter while looking ahead to a boom in income later in the year. Dong Energy’s operating profits for the first three months of the year slumped to DKK3.3bn (£375m) from DKK7.1bn last year, and a fifth lower than the DKK4.1bn expected by analysts, after the group booked a lower share of profits from the sale of stakes in its gas distribution network and the Burbo Bank wind farm off the coast of Liverpool. Nonetheless the expansion of the Burbo Bank project, completed this month, pushed the group’s total wind generation to an all-time high of 2.1TWh. This lifted income from its wind farm projects by 21pc compared to the same quarter last year. Ms Wiinholt said the group’s decision to build two German schemes without any subsidies over the next 10 years marks a “step change” for the company. However, Dong does not expect this feat to be replicated in UK waters until later in the next decade. Ms Wiinholt said the German project was a “special case” because it would be one of the first to use the group’s next-generation wind turbines, which will be ready by 2024. A key advantage of German projects is that the government will pick up the cost of connecting the wind turbines to the national grid. They also benefit from being located in a particularly windy site, she added.
Telegraph 27th April 2017 read more »