Russia selects 2,221 MW of projects in renewable auction

June 15 (Renewables Now) - Russia has selected a total of 2,221 MW of projects, of which 1,651 MW wind farms, in its 2017 renewable energy auction.

The Fortum-Rusnano wind investment fund secured 1,000 MW of wind projects slated for commissioning in the 2018-2022 period. The projects will be covered by 15-year capacity supply agreements (CSA) and a price corresponding to about EUR 115-135 (USD 129-152) per MWh, Finnish utility Fortum Oyj (HEL:FORTUM), which has a 50% stake in the investment fund, said. The investment decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis, the company added.

Fortum announced the tie-up with state-run nanotechnology company Rusnano in April.

Two more companies won wind projects in the tender. Italy's Enel SpA (BIT:ENEL) has won two, of 90 MW and 201 MW, to be completed in 2020 and 2021, respectively. VetroOGK, part of Russian state-controlled nuclear energy company Rosatom, has secured 360 MW of capacity for commissioning in 2020-2022.

The Russian Association of Wind Power Industry (RAWI) said that taking into account the tenders of 2015-16, Russia should build 2,276 MW of wind farms between 2017 and 2022.

A total of 2,491 MW wind bids were submitted in the auction which started on May 29 and had a 1,900-MW quota for wind.

The auction also sought 625 MW of solar capacity and 284 MW of hydropower capacity. According to an official document published by the Administrator of the Trading System NP Market Council on Wednesday, 520 MW of solar projects and 49.8 MW of hydro projects were selected.

The auction attracted bids for a total of 106 projects representing 3,061 MW of capacity. These included 78 wind projects, 26 solar and 2 hydropower projects.

NP Market Council noted that the strongest competition was for wind capacity for 2020, 2021 and 2022, which led to a reduction in capital costs for the construction of 1 kW by an average of 21% compared to the ceiling level.

(EUR 1 = USD 1.125)