Statkraft 150 MW wind plans

State utility Statkraft is planning a 150 MW wind farm of 75 turbines to be operating on the island of Smøla, to the west of Trondheim, by end 2003. The utility's Geir Fuglseth says the first phase, 40 MW using 20 turbines, is to be running by 2001. "We haven't chosen a supplier yet, and we wouldn't tell you if we had," he adds. Nonetheless, contract negotiations are underway and expected to be complete by June. Sydkraft states it will install 2 MW, three bladed turbines with hub heights of 60.7 metres. Sydkraft is paying 25% of the NOK 1.4 billion cost of the project, with the rest coming from the Norwegian wind program budget, says Fuglseth, who seems confident the subsidies will be granted. The development will require a 40 MW transformer station and a 66 kV power line to Strammen for the first phase, and a 132 kV line for the next step, according to Sydkraft. The local population of Smøla is apparently enthusiastically behind the plans, according to national newspaper Bergens Tidende.