Ingka Group, which owns most of the IKEA retail stores across the globe, through its investment arm Ingka Investments, has acquired ready-to-build wind and solar projects totaling 92 MW located in north-western Poland for the consideration of €190 million (~$203 million).
The projects were developed by OX2, large-scale onshore wind, and solar project developer. The projects are expected to be fully operational by the end of 2024.
The total investment transaction value of €190 million (~$203.1 million) includes a transaction value of €173 million (~$184.9 million) to OX2 and the remainder to other stakeholders involved in the wind and solar project company.
The wind project is located in Wysoka, totaling 63 MW, with an estimated annual production of 181 GWh. The solar project is located in Recz, totaling 29 MW, with an estimated annual production of 31 GWh.
The acquisition helps Ingka Investments to expand its renewable energy portfolio in Poland.
The investment will help to reduce the IKEA climate footprint across the value chain and support a broader transition to a net-zero society.
Ingka Investments currently owns and operates six wind projects with a total capacity of 180 MW in Poland, producing 450 GWh per year.
“This investment represents another important step for Ingka Investments as it will mean a further reduction of the climate footprint of IKEA Retail, including distribution and logistics, and IKEA value chain partners based around the country. Having recently invested in renewable energy in Spain and Germany, this investment demonstrates our continued commitment to invest in countries where IKEA Retail operates and to increase the share of renewable energy across the IKEA value chain,” said Krister Mattsson, Managing Director at Ingka Investments.
Currently, Ingka Group owns and manages 575 wind turbines in 17 countries, 20 solar projects, and 935,000 solar panels on the roofs of IKEA stores and warehouses.
In April 2022, Ingka Investments acquired nine solar PV projects totaling 440 MW in Germany and Spain from solar PV developer Enerparc. The expected generation capacity of the solar PV projects is around 300 MW in Germany across four solar development projects and 140 MW in Spain across five solar development projects. The total investment in the solar PV development portfolio will amount to approximately €340 million (~$371 million).
Large-scale solar project acquisition activity remained strong, with over 23 GW of solar projects acquired in Q1 2022 compared to 13.1 GW in Q4 2021, according to Mercom’s Q1 2022 solar funding and M&A report. Large-scale solar project acquisitions in Q1 2022 were the second-highest recorded to date.
