Statkraft Eyes Distressed Assets After Offshore Wind Exit This Year
Christian Rynning-Toennesen, chief executive officer of Statkraft, Europe's biggest producer of renewable energy, told Reuters on a sidelines of an energy conference in Oslo on Thursday:
* Plans to complete divestment of its 25-percent stake in the Dogger Bank offshore wind power project offshore Britain to Statoil (STO) and SEE this year
* Says Statkraft has decided to exit offshore wind power to focus on other opportunities
* Says Statkraft is looking for investment opportunities in low cost hydro, wind and solar assets in Brazil, Chile and Peru
* Says also looking to buy distressed power assets with potential to increase efficiency and expand, primarily hydro, in Europe, South America and India
* Says sees potential for more power interconnectors to be built form Norway to other countries after 2020, in addition of currently planned two interconnectors to Britain and Germany
* "In the longer term there is a big potential to do more (in terms of interconnectors)."
* Says still sees high interest for renewable energy in California and other state of the U.S. and willingness to continue putting up investment schemes, despite lack of clarify from the new U.S. administration
* "But I'm equality confused like everybody else of what the new (U.S.) administration wants."
(Reporting by Lefteris Karagiannopoulos, writing by Nerijus Adomaitis)
