NIB to finance world’s largest offshore windmill farm in Denmark

A EUR 160 million loan from the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) will help DONG Energy A/S to finance their investment in the largest offshore windmill farm in the world and to complete the Danish political strategy of expanding within renewable energy. The financing will contribute to more production of environmentally friendly energy to the Danish electricity grid.

The 10-year-maturity loan agreement between NIB and DONG Energy A/S was signed today in Copenhagen. The loan will finance Horns Rev II, an offshore windmill farm in the Danish part of the North Sea. NIB also participated in the financing of the now completed Horns Rev I project, located nearby.

DONG Energy is the leading integrated gas, electricity and heat utility in Denmark and the third-largest integrated utility in the Nordic region. With its 91 offshore wind turbines, Horns Rev II will be the largest offshore windmill farm in the world and the production will be able to cover 200,000 households electricity consumption p.a. or 2% of the Danish electricity consumption. By producing environmentally friendly energy for the Danish electricity grid, the project contributes to energy production with significantly lower emissions of CO2 (greenhouse gas) as well as NOx and SO2 (acid precipitation) compared to energy production based on fossil fuels.

“We welcome this opportunity to finance investments in a renewable energy source in the Nordic-Baltic region. The wind farm is estimated to produce 900 GWh/year, roughly equal to 900,000 tonnes/year less CO2 compared to fossil-fuel-based electricity production,” explains Nils E. Emilsson, First Vice-President and Head of Lending. NIB’s loan will cover over one third of the total investment.

NIB is a multilateral financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden. NIB finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.

For further information, please contact
Mr Nils E. Emilsson, First Vice-President and Head of Lending, at +358 10 618 001,
Mr Per Klaumann, Senior Director, Copenhagen office, at +45 4019 4045