Greencoat UK Wind is to acquire a stake in the 1200MW Hornsea 1 offshore wind farm off east England from Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) for a total cash consideration, including cash and working capital, of approximately £400m (€470m).
The acquisition of the 12.5% interest is expected to complete in the third quarter of 2022.
The listed renewable infrastructure fund said the acquisition is expected to be funded from cash flow and, to the extent required, the company’s revolving credit facility.
Greencoat UK Wind chair 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 1 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.”
Hornsea 1 comprises 174 Siemens 7MW turbines and entered into full commercial operation in December 2019.
It benefits from a 15 year Contract for Difference at a price of £175.25 a megawatt-hour.
Hornsea 1 is currently 50% owned by Orsted and 50% by GIP, with GIP’s 50% stake part funded by £2.9bn of limited recourse debt.
Greencoat UK Wind’s pro rata share of this limited recourse debt is £0.7bn, giving a total enterprise value of £1.1bn for its net 12.5% stake.
Orsted will continue to provide operation, maintenance and management services to the wind farm.