DONG ENERGY / ØRSTED

New Identity Accompanies Shift From Black to Green DONG ENERGY / ØRSTED

PRODUCTION: Rod Stone

// Over the past decade, DONG Energy has sought to transform itself from an energy company based on coal and oil to a global leader in renewable energy. In doing so the company has increased earnings considerably, while reducing the use of coal in its power stations and building out new offshore wind farms. Since 2006, carbon emissions have been reduced by 52% and by 2023, they will have been reduced by 96% in comparison.

As a consequence of this profound strategic transformation, and alongside the recent divestment of its upstream oil and gas production, the name DONG Energy has been universally deemed no longer applicable to the company and its operations. As Thomas Thune Andersen, Chairman of the Board of Directors, explains: “DONG was originally short for Danish Oil and Natural Gas. With our profound strategic transformation and the divestment of our upstream oil and gas business, this is no longer who we are. Therefore, now is the right time to change our name.”

“Our vision is a world that runs entirely on green energy,” he continues. “Climate change is one of the most serious challenges facing the world today, and to avoid causing serious harm to the global ecosystems, we need to fundamentally change the way we power the world by switching from black to green energy.” DONG Energy is no more; henceforth the company will be known as Ørsted. This is inspired by the innovative Danish scientist Hans Christian Ørsted (1777- 1851), who spearheaded several scientific discoveries to help lay the foundation for how today’s societies are powered. CEO Henrik Poulsen explained the rationale behind the company’s choice: “We’ve undertaken significant efforts to find the right name and brand identity for our company. Our new name recognises H.C. Ørsted’s curiosity, dedication and interest in nature and our brand identity speaks to the innovation and pro-found understanding of nature, which is vital to creating a world that runs entirely on green energy.”

The newly-monikered company has in recent weeks been awarded a contract to build its Hornsea Project Two offshore wind farm, coming in at the lowest-ever price for offshore wind in the UK. To be built 89 kilometres from the Yorkshire coast and expected to be operational from 2022, its massive capacity of 1386 MW, enough to power over 1.3 million UK homes, will position Hornsea Project Two as the world’s biggest wind farm.

Samuel Leupold, Executive Vice President and CEO of Wind Power, described the significance of this award for the company’s intended next steps. “[ This] is another important step towards ful-filling our vision of making offshore wind the most competitive form of electricity generation. We have always promoted size as a key driver for cost. The ideal size of an offshore wind farm is 800-1500 MW, and therefore it is natural that Hornsea Project Two will deliver record-low costs to society. At the same time, the low strike price demonstrates the cost saving potential of developerbuilt offshore grid connections, which in the UK is included in the project scope.”

This is exactly to what Henrik Poulsen was referring when he stated that, “2017 will be remembered as the year when offshore wind became cheaper than black energy. It has never been more clear that it is possible to create a world that runs entirely on green energy. The time is now right for us to change our name to demonstrate that we want to help create such a world.”

DONG ENERGY / ØRSTED

+44 20 7811 5200 www.dongenergy.co.uk