Energy production from renewable sources has been prioritized globally to tackle the current energy crisis and climate change. The European Union has set the goal of becoming net zero by 2050, a key region to this transition is the Baltics mainly due to the high interconnection with neighboring markets and the high potential for offshore wind projects in the Baltic Sea. Despite the potential to date, solar energy growth has been lackluster. The total installed capacity of Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia was 800MW at the end of 2020. However, the easing of regulations and the emergence of projects outside of state auctions will aim to kick-start solar farms in this region, and in this article, we will discuss 3 key players behind the growth.
1) Taaleri Energia – Solar and Wind investor and developer based in Finland
Taaleria is a global investor and developer in utility-scale wind and solar projects, managing five private equity funds with a total installed capacity of 4.9GW located across Europe, the United States, and the Middle East. Most recently, the SolarWind II fund raised €44m in December 2021. The SolarWind II fund has acquired projects located in Poland, Texas, Norway, and Spain. In 2022, the Helsinki-based group announced their SolarWind III Fund which will target wind, solar, and battery projects located in the Nordics, Baltics, Poland, Southeast Europe, Iberia, and Texas. The fund has acquired 17 development projects for the Fund’s seed portfolio and if these projects are completed successfully they will have an installed capacity of 3GW.
2) Stuart Solar – Solar investment group located in Lithuania
The Lithuanian-based group has 8 years of experience in solar energy and has invested over €3m in solar projects. Stuart has over 2,000 clients from commercial and household solar parks. The group maintains a strong Lithuanian presence with three projects located in Utena, Kursenai, and Birzai.
3) Eesti Energia – Solar and Wind investor based in Estonia
Eesti Energia is a fast-growing renewables investment firm, in 2022 the group invested €124m which was more than double the investments made in 2021. By doing so, the Estonia-based group has gained the second-largest market share in Latvia and Lithuania. Eesti made two large solar investments through the listed company Enefit Green. The two solar parks are located in Purtse and Zambrow, with €2.7m and €2.9m investments respectively. The growth of the Estonian group can be seen in their record number of customers seen in Lithuania, the number has quadrupled in the first 9 months of 2022 bringing the figure to over 100,000.
Image Source: Moritz Kindler via Unsplash (04.02.2023)
