Turbines secured for two more big projects

Fifty Vestas 3 MW wind turbines are destined for delivery to Turkey this year for two separate projects. Thirty machines will make up the 90 MW Samli plant, the country's biggest to date, which is now under construction in the Baleksir-Bandirma region, south of the Sea of Mamara, while 20 turbines will be installed at Catalca near Istanbul. The Samli project was developed by BAKI Electrik Üretim Ltd, a subsidiary of local owner-producer Aksa Enerji, and is scheduled for completion in early 2009. It is Vestas' third order from Aksa. The Danish company supplied six 1.8 MW wind turbines for a plant at Karakurt, near Izmir, which comes on line this month, and is currently delivering 15, 2 MW machines for installation at Sabenova on the Syrian border, for commissioning early 2009. Aksa bought both projects from a German wind project developer, tw.energy, a joint-venture between the Hanover-based Windwärts Energie and Target. Financing for all three projects was guaranteed by means of a soft loan from Denmark's Eksport Kredit Fonden, a government agency. Aksa is targeting 250 MW of installed wind capacity by 2010. The machines bound for Catalca are for a project developed by Ertürk Elektrik Üretim Ltd, owned by Sanko Holdings, another Turkish company which recently moved into wind power as an owner-operator. The 60 MW plant is due on line in the first half of 2008.