Alight and Swedish forest owner will partner up on 2 GW of solar

The firms announced on Monday that solar developer Alight has partnered with Sweden's largest forest owner Sveaskog in order to develop solar energy project totaling 2 gigawatts over a five-year period.

Erik Brandsma said that investing in solar energy on Sveaskog's land was a natural move for the company as it is a large landowner. It also allows them to contribute to energy transition, and to future energy needs, without fossil fuels.

Alight, the forest company owned by the state, will invest between 30% and 50% in the solar park, according to the statement.

Sveaskog is the owner of 14% or 3.4 million hectares of Sweden's forest.

The firms stated that if just 0.2%, or 10,000 acres, of the land were converted into solar parks it would generate 5 GW renewable energy and double Sweden's solar output.

Two projects have already been developed - one solar park covering approximately 150 hectares of central Sweden, and the other covering 70 hectares of southern Sweden.

They said that both regions need to expand renewable electricity production because of significant electricity deficits.

SolarPower Europe reports that solar development has accelerated in Sweden in the last few years. The installed capacity is expected to grow by 1.5 GW to 4.1 GW by 2023. (Reporting and editing by Angus MacSwan; Nora Buli)

(source: Reuters)