GDF Suez to Boost Focus on Marine Energy

French utility GDF Suez aims to double its power generation capacity from renewable energy in Europe between 2015 and 2025 and will focus in particular on marine energies, the company said on Tuesday.

GDF Suez, with Spain's Iberdrola and Italy's Enel , is one of the industry leaders in renewable energy investment and has made Europe's energy transition the key plank of its European investment strategy.

In 2009 it had aimed to boost its renewables capacity by 50 percent by 2015 - a target it says it will achieve - but now it wants to accelerate its renewables investment drive.

The gas and power group currently operates 17.8 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity worldwide, or 15 percent of its total, of which 7.8 GW is in Europe and 10 GW is outside the region. By 2025 it wants to have 16 GW of renewable power generating capacity in Europe.

Deputy Chief Executive Isabelle Kocher told reporters that by the end of 2015, GDF Suez would have renewables capacity of 21 GW and that the firm is accelerating investment in renewable capacity and investing in renewable energy technologies.

"Nearly half of the capacity that we are developing is in renewables, which are not marginal but totally central for GDF Suez," Kocher told reporters.

Most of GDF Suez's renewables capacity is in hydropower, which accounts for 51 percent in Europe and 87 percent outside Europe. Wind power accounts for 36 percent in Europe and 11 percent outside Europe.

But the group is developing a series of new generating technologies, with a strong focus on marine energies such as fixed and floating offshore wind, energy from sea currents and cooling systems for seaside cities that pump up cold water from deep below the surface.