Irish renewable energy company Mainstream Renewable Power has announced eight utility-scale wind and solar projects slated to reach financial close and begin construction this year. The projects, which are spread across four continents, have a combined capacity of over 1 GW and will cost approximately EUR 1 billion.
The projects include the following: the 450 MW Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind farm in Scotland; 140 MW Loeriesfontein 2, 80 MW Noupoort, and 140 MW Khobab wind farms in South Africa; 27 MW San Manuel and 43 MW Alena wind farms in Chile; 100 MW Pedernales solar farm in Chile; and 46 MW Old Man 2 wind farm in Canada.
In November 2013, Mainstream closed a deal to sell its Oldman 2 project, located in Alberta, to home furnishings retailer IKEA. The wind farm is expected to be operational this fall, at which point IKEA will purchase the plant. As part of the deal, Mainstream will continue to operate and maintain the wind farm on behalf of IKEA for its lifespan. (To learn more about IKEA's global renewable energy plans, click here.)
"We are now entering a very intensive growth phase," says Eddie O'Connor, Mainstream's CEO, later noting, "We put almost 300 megawatts into construction last year, and we have an even larger portfolio of late-stage projects ready to go into construction next year."
