The growth ambition of renewable energy, implemented by its subsidiary Enefit Green that is listed on Nasdaq Tallinn, has more than doubled compared to the previous strategy period and the promises given to investors so far.
Whereas the previous action plan envisaged an increase of 600 megawatts in new wind farms and solar parks to 1,100 megawatts by 2025, then now the even more ambitious growth plan for renewable energy envisages more than quadrupling today's production capacity (457 MW) to about 1,900 megawatts by 2026.
“Finding a balance between energy affordability, environmental impact and security of supply has become a socially critical issue in all of Eesti Energia's home markets,” said Hando Sutter, CEO of Eesti Energia and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Enefit Green.
“The fastest and most cost-effective solution for society is electrification through renewable electricity replacing fossil energy sources, such as motor fuels in transport or natural gas in thermal energy. We have promised our customers to provide them with a sufficient amount of renewable electricity in this energy revolution, either by producing it ourselves or by purchasing it from other developers,” he added.
Upon implementation of the five-year plan, Eesti Energia's annual production of renewable electricity promises to reach a total of nearly 5 terawatt-hours in home markets by 2026, compared to 1.5 terawatt-hours in 2021. Such an amount of renewable electricity can cover the annual electricity consumption of up to 1.5 million average households.
Of new power plants, the Tolpanvaara (72 MW) wind farm in Finland, the Akmene (75 MW) and Šilale II (43 MW) wind farms in Lithuania, the Purtse (21 MW) wind farm in Estonia and two solar parks in Poland (15 MW) – a total of 226 MW – are currently under construction.
In addition to these projects, nearly 600 MW of onshore wind farms will be completed in Estonia and Lithuania by the end of 2026, as well as nearly 600 MW of solar power plants in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.
“We have given a name to our transition to carbon-free production and wider introduction of energy solutions based on green electricity: Journey to Zero. At the same time, Eesti Energia's customers, by fixing their electricity costs for years and consuming clean local energy, offer us investment security, helping us build new wind farms and solar parks in a mutually beneficial “green” partnership,” Sutter explained.
More than 35,000 Eesti Energia’s business and household customers have so far chosen this solution in the consumption volume of 13 TWh.
Eesti Energia helps customers implement the green revolution and reduce their environmental footprint through various energy solutions by providing solar and heat solutions, charging, storage and lighting services, as well as flexible energy consumption management.
The role of the network company Elektrilevi on the journey to zero is to ensure the connection of small Estonian producers, especially new solar power plants, to the distribution network. While at the end of 2021, there were nearly 12,000 solar power plants in Elektrilevi’s network with a total capacity of 385 MW, then by the end of 2026, the generation capacity would triple to more than 1,100 MW. This means that on a sunny summer day, all the electricity needed in Estonia might come from solar power plants.
The role of Narva’s thermal power plants is to be flexible in production and to participate in the electricity market during periods of high demand. Eesti Energia is ready to offer steerable generation capacity and services necessary to maintain the frequency of the electricity system also after 2023 to the system operator Elering responsible for security of electricity supply. The focus of steerable power plants in the region is currently on Auvere Power Plant, being the most competitive, and on the two remaining fluidized bed production units.
An important part of Eesti Energia's long-term carbon neutrality strategy concerns a gradual transition from the production of liquid fuels to the production of chemical feedstocks, in which partners and research institutions have been involved by the company.
“European chemical companies are interested in the feedstocks to be produced by Eesti Energia in the future, as the process of obtaining them is more sustainable compared to crude oil processing. Namely, the Enefit technology enables the co-pyrolysis of waste with oil shale – waste tyres and mixed plastic waste that has been treated as unusable so far. After further treatment, it will be possible to turn them into materials and items necessary for everyday life,” Sutter explained, and emphasized that their development perspective based on a real circular economy made industry in Ida-Virumaa sustainable.
“Nothing that requires burning will be produced from oil shale after 2040. The more valuable use of oil shale will then have no connection with energy, while jobs that create high added value for Estonia will remain in Ida-Virumaa,” he added.
Investments needed for the energy revolution are very capital-intensive, without exception. In addition to basic investments, Eesti Energia plans to invest 2 billion euros in new development projects alone over five years.
Eesti Energia's journey to zero also means incorporating new competencies to turn the complexity of the energy world into a convenient and beneficial experience for customers. According to a recent survey by Kantar Emor, Eesti Energia continues to hold the title of the most reputable employer in Estonia, which supports their recruitment of new talent.