Norwegian energy company Statkraft has announced that it will reduce its targets for building solar PV, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and wind farms from 2026.
As reported on our sister site PVTech, the company has said it will prioritise investments in its home country of Norway, while reducing its target development rate for solar, BESS, and onshore wind from 2.5-3GW to 2-2.5GW.
Commenting on lowering the target, Statkraft president and CEO Birgitte Ringstad Vartdal said that “the market conditions for the entire renewable energy industry have become more challenging. We are therefore sharpening our strategy to allocate the capital to the most value-creating opportunities with the best strategic fit”.
She added: “With a sharpened strategy, we are well equipped to deliver both good value creation for the owner and to be a strong driving force in the energy transition in Norway, Europe and the world.”
Statkraft in the UK
The news comes at a time when Statkraft appeared to be growing its solar and BESS ambitions in the UK.
At the start of this year, Statkraft signed a simultaneous Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Gresham House and a corporate Power Purchase Agreement (cPPA) with Workspace for the 20MW Beavor Grange Solar Farm in Devon.
In February, Statkraft was granted planning permission for a 50MW BESS in East Ayrshire, Scotland, the firm’s fifth Greener Grid Park. In March 2024, Statkraft announced it had submitted plans for a solar farm near the town of Sandwich to Dover District Council.
Statkraft has also been driving into the pumped hydropower sector in the UK, announcing late last year that it had acquired a 450MW pumped storage hydro project near Scotland’s famed Loch Ness. As part of the company’s new sharpened growth strategy, Stakraft says it will focus more on hydropower, aiming to initiate at least five major capacity upgrade projects in Norway by 2030.
A version of this story first appeared on our sister publication Current±. You can read the original here.
