Dong Energy has agreed to sell 50% of its 573MW Race Bank wind farm off the UK east coast to the investment arm of the Australian outfit Macquarie Group.
The Danish developer said it has also agreed to share construction risk with the Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund 5 and Macquarie Capital under the deal.
The acquisition of a 50% share includes a commitment to fund half of the project’s capex including transmission assets for a total of £1.6bn.
Race Bank is in the “advanced stage” of construction and will be commissioned in 2018, Dong said.
“I welcome Macquarie as partner on Race Bank. They have successfully invested in infrastructure projects worldwide and have experience in offshore wind from previous investments,” said Dong wind power chief executive Samuel Leupold.
“We have seen a high level of interest from a number of potential investors in Race Bank. This proves that our partnership model continues to be attractive.”
Dong has also increased its group operating profit guidance to DKR24-25bn from a previous range of DKR20-23bn for 2016 on the back of the deal.
The wind power division is now expected to report EBITDA towards the high end of the DKR10-12bn range, it said.
Image: Dong’s Burbo Bank 2 wind farm (Dong)
Macquarie snags Race Bank share
Dong increases profit guidance after selling 50% of 573MW UK project
By EBS