Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has acquired a shareholding in Skyborn Renewables, an offshore wind developer and operator.
PIF has taken a 9.5% stake in Skyborn alongside Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), an independent infrastructure investment fund.
The Skyborn platform includes interests in operating and under-construction projects in Germany, France and Taiwan as well as a pipeline of over 30GW of highly diversified offshore wind projects in various stages of development.
The company has over 20 years of development experience, a track record of over 7GW of capacity developed to-date and a presence in over 15 European and APAC markets.
PIF has a strong track record of investing in the low carbon sector such as electric vehicles and solar energy projects, as part of a commitment to develop 70% of Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy by 2030.
Turqi Alnowaiser, Deputy Governor and Head of the International Investments Division at PIF, said: “This investment opportunity enhances our objectives to increase our portfolio of investments in the low carbon sector, which now includes solar, power generation, electric vehicles and offshore wind energy.
“Offshore wind has a key role to play in driving global decarbonisation and we see significant growth opportunities for Skyborn.
Our partnership with Skyborn and GIP will help drive the development of innovative sustainable technology, which positions Saudi Arabia as an enabler of industries of the future and the creator of new opportunities.”
Matt Harris, Founding Partner, Global Infrastructure Partners, said: “We are excited to have one of our most important investor partners, PIF, invest alongside us in Skyborn Renewables.
“Offshore wind is an important component of the transition to clean, renewable power. The investment supports our commitment to the energy transition through the continued growth of global renewable power generation.”