E.ON has entered into an agreement with Dutch company Ampyx Power to invest in the development of the latter’s airborne wind energy; and if this is successful, to construct and operate a demonstration site in County Mayo in Ireland.

Once the test site is completed, E.ON will be at the forefront of the commercialisation of airborne wind technology and able to work closely with the most promising technology developers, researchers and government institutes.
In 2016, E.ON invested in the Scotland-based airborne wind energy start-up company Kite Power Systems.

Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, CEO of E.ON Climate & Renewables, said: “Airborne wind supports one of our overall targets to drive down costs for renewable energy.

“In addition to making airborne wind competitive with conventional wind power, we would like to work with authorities and legislators to pave the way for introducing this exciting technology and eventually make it eligible to participate in tendering processes.”

Netherlands-based Ampyx Power, founded in 2009, is one of the leading companies in the emerging airborne wind energy sector. Wolbert Allaart, its managing director, explained: “This co-operation with E.ON is a major milestone for our company. It allows us to incorporate E.ON’s vast offshore wind expertise into our product design efforts.

“The clear proof of market interest inspires our team of almost 50 engineers, who have been working on product development since 2014, having proved our concept in the first five years of the company’s existence.”