AMSTERDAM (AP) — A Canadian firm says it has raised 2.8 billion euros ($3.8 billion) to build a major new windmill farm 85 kilometers off the Dutch coast near Germany.
Northland Power of Toronto said Thursday the 600 megawatt “Gemini” project should be completed in 2017. That’s enough electricity to supply roughly 750,000 Dutch households, if operating at full capacity.
Despite the country’s long history of windmill use, the Netherlands has one of the smallest bases of wind turbines for generating electricity among wealthy nations — less than 5 percent of Dutch electricity production comes from renewable sources.
Dutch governments shifted course on energy policy several times in the past decade. The current government offers a flexible subsidy per kilowatt-hour generated, paying more when prices are low and less when they are high.
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