Airtricity signs $550m GE deal

The wind energy company Airtricity has signed a $550 million (€438 million) deal with GE Energy that will give the company more than 300 new wind turbines.

The company needs the turbines to build more capacity in the US. It also has plans to enter the Canadian markets for the first time.

Airtricity has plans to build wind farms producing a combined 4,500 megawatts in Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, Colorado and New Mexico. It is also looking at the California market.

The deal with GE works out at $1.8 million a turbine. Airtricity said it was satisfied to land such a deal at a time when wind turbines were in short supply around the world.

Airtricity chief executive Eddie O'Connor said: "This investment represents Airtricity's largest purchase of turbines in the history of the company to date".

Wind energy is becoming increasingly popular in the US and president George W Bush pledged to get 20 per cent of its energy from the sector.

The two companies have worked together before on the Arklow Wind Bank project. Each turbine will produce 1.5 megawatts of energy. It is believed there are 5,000 such turbines in operation throughout the world.

Based in Atlanta, Georgia, GE Energy works in all areas of the energy industry including coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear energy.

Turbines have run into planning objections in Ireland, Britain and the US.

But in Britain, the government is expected to give the go-ahead shortly for homeowners to erect their own micro wind turbines that can generate electricity for domestic dwellings. The UK is expected to remove the need for planning permissions for such turbines.

The Minister for the Environment here, Dick Roche, yesterday published new development guidelines for wind turbines in the Republic. He denied, however, that this could lead to turbines being erected in scenic areas.

Airtricity has been on a fundraising drive over recent weeks, raising €250 million from investors. The company has been the subject of IPO rumours for many years but so far it has decided against raising capital via this route.