British investment company Greencoat UK Wind has agreed to acquire a 12.5% stake in the 1.2GW Hornsea I offshore wind farm from Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) for a £400m ($490m) cash consideration.
Located 128km (80 miles) from the Yorkshire coast in the North Sea, Hornsea I is owned jointly by Ørsted and GIP, which each hold 50% stakes in the project.
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The wind farm is equipped with 174 Siemens wind turbines and has been operational since December 2019.
Greencoat UK plans to finance the deal from cash flow and, to the extent required, via its revolving credit facility.
According to Greencoat’s estimates, the 12.5% stake it has agreed to acquire has an enterprise value of £1.1bn.
The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of this year.
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By GlobalDataØrsted said that it will continue to provide operation, maintenance and management services for the wind farm.
Greencoat UK Wind chairman Shonaid Jemmett-Page said: “As the leading independent UK wind farm owner, we are pleased to announce our investment into the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
“Hornsea I has a high load factor and high CFD price which complements our subsidy free investments.
“This transaction, once completed, will add another high quality operating asset to our portfolio and increase our net generating capacity to over 1.6GW.
“We continue to see an attractive pipeline of projects, both onshore and offshore, and given the size and scale that the Company has attained over recent years, we remain strongly positioned to deliver more value-accretive acquisitions and extend our track record of strong shareholder returns.”
In April 2020, Greencoat UK Wind agreed to purchase the South Kyle wind farm in Scotland from its developer, Swedish energy company Vattenfall.
South Kyle will feature 50 turbines and be capable of providing power to nearly 170,000 homes.
