Airtricity, the renewable energy development division of Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE), has entered into an equal joint venture with Gothia Vind, a wind energy developer based near Gothenburg, Sweden.

The joint venture is aiming to develop around 200MW of wind farm capacity in western Sweden, with the first wind farm scheduled to be in operation around 2011. The development of this capacity is expected to require equity investment by Airtricity and Gothia Vind of around € 30 million each. Non-recourse debt is expected to account for around 80 per cent of the total cost of the investment. The joint venture's plans are said to be part of SSE's intention to invest, on an equity basis, around £ 500 million over the next five years in renewable energy in new markets and technologies.