Photo: City of Senj
China’s construction company Norinco International Cooperation has officially started building a 156 MW wind farm near the City of Senj on the Adriatic coast of Croatia. Over the next two years, the company will invest EUR 180 million in the installation of 39 wind turbines.
At the end of July, Norinco obtained a building permit for the construction of the wind farm with a projected annual output of 530 GWh.
The plan is to finish the wind farm in the next two years, by the end of 2020, but the company will do its best to do it before, Wang Xinqing, vice president of Norinco International, said at a ceremony marking the start of construction in Senj, the Croatian media reported.
He noted that this project was agreed at the 16+1 summit and announced that around 100 local workers would be employed on the construction of the wind farm and that local firms will be hired.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said that the wind farm’s construction will strengthen the production capacities for electricity from renewable energy sources.
According to Plenković, by building this power plant Croatia shows it cares about environmental protection, but will also modernize the existing electricity network.
The revenues of the municipality of Brinje and the City of Senj will grow by HRK 5.5 million (EUR 741.000) annually thanks to taxes on the wind farm’s operation, Plenković said.
Senj Mayor Sanjin Rukavina said that the wind farm will cover an area of 44.8 square kilometers.
Senj is continuing its path to the development of renewable energy sources, which began with the Vrataruša wind farm project, Rukavina said.
Norinco earned rights to build wind farm by buying Energija Projekt
According to the Croatian media, Norinco bought 76% of Croatia-based Energija Projekt, which has developed the 156 MW wind farm project near Senj, for EUR 32 million at the end of last year.
In March this year, law firm Norton Rose Fulbright announced that it had advised the Chinese company on a USD 71 million acquisition of rights to build and operate a 156 MW wind power project in Croatia.
Norinco was also interested in the construction of power plants in Montenegro, including hydropower plants on the Morača river and Komarnica hydropower plant.
Norinco International Cooperation is a Chinese state-owned construction company which has contracted large-scale projects, involving in the transportation, housing, energy, communications, environmental protection, and other sectors in Asia, Africa, and Europe.
Be the first one to comment on this article.