The proposed offshore wind farm at Sikka l-Bajda is expected to cost some €130 million and the government is also looking into the possibility of building wind turbines on land, Resources Minister George Pullicino said yesterday.
Speaking at the PN's general council Mr Pullicino said the private sector will be given the opportunity to invest in the offshore wind farm project.
The Netherlands-based company Blue H Technologies, in fact, has already confirmed its interest in developing such a wind farm, with a spokesman quoted by website windfair.net saying that the company's technology would be ideal for local conditions. The company - one of nine to submit an expression of interest for offshore wind farm development two years ago - specialises in the development of offshore wind farms.
The government is so far not excluding wholly private investment, saying that this matter is still being studied and would be decided at a later stage.
"What is important is to start the development application process and in the meantime carry out a number of studies," he told The Times.
There are no set timeframes in place either. However, the project is expected to take some four to five years to come to fruition, especially because of the high demand that exists for the turbines.
The project has had a somewhat turbulent history, resurfacing in the government's plans after first having been excluded as unfeasible. But eventually the pledge made its way into the party's electoral programme as part of a broader environmental reform package.
The plan, however, was to invest in a deep-water wind farm some 32 kilometres out at sea. It would have the potential to offload any surplus electricity through the cable which is being built between Malta and Sicily, connecting the country to the European grid.
Mr Pullicino now also says that the government will be presenting the necessary documents to the Malta Environment and Planning Authority to start the process of building wind farms on land.
The submission is expected to take place within the next month. However, the minister said he is still not in a position to say how many land wind farms would be built, since documents are still being concluded.
Last May Mr Pullicino was quoted as saying that wind farms could not be accommodated on land. But he yesterday denied this, saying he had never ruled out the possibility of having wind farms on land, although space in Malta was limited.
"It is possible and there are a number of sites being identified to be studied further," he said, although he was reluctant to go into further details.
On Friday, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said the government was preparing to officially file a permit application for the development of the farm on a reef some two kilometres off Mellieha's Aħrax Point. The shallow-water wind farm is expected to generate enough energy for 21,000 families.