SeaEnergy and TGC to develop windfarms in Taiwan

LONDON (Reuters) - British renewable energy company SeaEnergy said on Tuesday it will build offshore windfarm projects in Taiwan with the Taiwan Generations Corporation (TGC), an energy project development company.

Taiwan's government has set a target to have 15 percent, or 8,450 megawatts (MW), of its electricity generated from renewable resources by 2025. And in August the government said it would invest T$45 billion ($1.4 billion) in the sector.

SeaEnergy and TGC did not place a value on the project.

Shares in SeaEnergy were 6.7 percent up at 51.5 pence in early trade.

The two companies will work together on a variety of projects beginning with the Changhua Offshore Windfarm, on the West coast of Taiwan, to help meet that goal. Changhua will have a capacity of up to 600 MW and will be jointly owned.

"Taiwan represents an opportunity for SeaEnergy to internationalize quickly in an environment where a project can be consented at a reasonably early date and at reasonable cost," Joel Staadecker, CEO of SeaEnergy said.

Separately, Danish wind turbine builder Vestas reported a larger-than-expected rise in third quarter operating profit and stuck to its 2009 guidance.

(Reporting by Sharon Lindores; Editing by Rhys Jones)