(Updates with more detail, share price)
By Jana Mlcochova
PRAGUE, Aug 27 (Reuters) - Czech power group CEZ <>
plans to build a 1.1 billion euro wind park in Romania, the
largest of its kind in Europe, in a move to offset emissions
from dirtier coal-fired power plants.
CEZ said the two-stage, 600 megawatt project would be built
around 17 km (10 miles) north of the Black Sea port of Constanta
and would be around twice the size of the next biggest onshore
wind farm in Europe.
Just over half the wind park would come on line in 2009 with
the remainder a year later, CEZ said.
The project will be one of the largest new foreign
investments in European Union newcomer Romania. The news pushed
the leu currency <EURRON=> 0.2 percent higher to 3.54 per euro.
CEZ said it bought the plans, which includes pre-approved
permissions and contracts, from renewable power developer
Continental Wind Partners. It will include two adjacent farms in
the towns of Fontanele and Cogealac.
Central Europe's largest listed company, CEZ aims to boost
spending on renewable energy due to an EU climate package
proposal expected to push up costs for production from fossil
fuels starting in 2013.
"Investment into renewables is one of the strategic measures
we are taking to respond to the adopted energy-climactic package
of the EU," CEZ Chairman Martin Roman said in a statement.
Roman added that CEZ would also extend power production from
gas and nuclear plants as a way to meet CO2 emission targets.
CEZ shares were 1.06 percent lower at 1,226.80 crowns at
0745 GMT, underperforming Prague's main PX index, which was up
0.12 percent.
PUSH TO WIND
Eastern Europe, which relies mainly on coal and nuclear
energy for its electricity production, is lagging behind its
western neighbours on meeting the EU's renewable energy goals.
The bloc wants 20 percent of energy demand to be sourced
from renewables such as solar, wind, wave, hydro and biomass by
2020, versus 8.5 percent now.
The region also wants to reduce dependency on gas imports
from Russia, especially in the wake of Moscow's conflict with
Georgia this month and Russia's sharp opposition to plans by the
Czechs and Poles to host a U.S. missile shield.
Poland, the Czech Republic and Bulgaria had the biggest wind
energy capacity of all EU east European nations with 276, 116
and 70 MW, respectively, at end-2007, EWEA data showed.
This compared with over 22,000 MW for Germany and more than
15,000 MW for Spain, which are European and world leaders in
wind energy.
The project is CEZ's biggest foray into wind production and
a push away from its coal- and nuclear-heavy portfolio. Of the
32.2 TWh it produced in the first half of 2008, 54 percent was
from coal and 43 percent was from nuclear plants.
It has some 80 wind farms in the Czech Republic at various
stage of completion, with a total capacity of 150-220 MW, and
the company plans to have 1,000 MW installed capacity in wind
farms by 2020.
(Additional Reporting by Gerrard Wynn, Anna Mudeva, and Jason
Hovet; Writing by Michael Winfrey; Editing by David Cowell)
