By Markus Klausen and Matthias Goldschmidt
Germany's E.ON SE (EOAN.XE) and HSH Nordbank AG are pulling out
of a large-scale project aimed at generating renewable energy in
North Africa, the companies said Friday.
Utility E.ON won't extend its contract with the Dii GmbH
consortium when it expires this year, and will instead focus on its
own projects, a spokesman said. HSH also confirmed it is exiting
Dii, also known as Desertec Industrial Initiative.
The departures are the latest setback for the initiative
planning multi-billion euro investments in solar and wind power
generation in the desert. Dii was founded in 2009 as an industrial
consortium to help implement a plan to export solar power from
Africa to Europe. Dii backed away from the goal of meeting a fifth
of Europe's electricity demand by 2050 last year.
Two of the most important co-founders of Dii, Siemens AG and
automotive supplier Robert Bosch GmbH, left the project in
2012.
Other important Dii members, however, said Friday they are still
on board. "We remain with Dii," said a spokesman for RWE AG,
Germany's second-largest utility. Spokespeople for Munich Re,
Deutsche Bank AG and Schott AG also confirmed they are sticking
with the project.
--Friedrich Geiger contributed to this article
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