IKEA starts to assemble European wind energy portfolio

It may not be able to build wind turbines from a flat pack, but that has not stopped IKEA emerging as one of Europe's highest-profile wind farm operators.

It was revealed this week that the retail giant has acquired six German wind farms from Spanish wind turbine firm Gamesa, giving it access to 45MW of capacity, enough to power around 17 IKEA stores.

The acquisition, which was completed earlier this year, but only announced by Gamesa yesterday, builds on a similar deal that saw it acquire four French wind farms last year.

In total the company now operates 52 wind turbines boasting 93MW of capacity and providing enough energy to cover 10 per cent of the group's electricity needs.

It also confirmed that it is looking to continue its acquisition drive and is keen to make further investment in wind and solar energy as it aims to make good on its pledge to operate using 100 per cent renewable electricity.

Consumer-facing firms across Europe have vowed to increase their use of renewable energy, but relatively few have taken the step of owning and operating their own wind farms.

In the UK, the Co-operative Group has its own 16MW wind farm, while BT is similarly pursuing plans to build a £250m wind farm project in Wales. However, the majority of businesses have instead opted to purchase renewable energy from specialist energy suppliers.