UK-headquartered PV asset owner Octopus has signed a five-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Shell in Italy.
Under the deal’s terms Octopus will supply Shell Energy Europe with electricity from a 70.5MW portfolio of unsubsidised Italian solar assets.
The agreement with Shell Energy Europe fixes the power price for five years and will include ‘Guarantees of Origin’, a label providing information on electricity from renewable sources to customers on the energy source.
The PPA will cover six of 10 projects Octopus is building once they have been completed in early 2019.
Octopus energy investment team head Matt Setchell said: “This is a landmark deal for Octopus as we continue to drive value from our unsubsidised solar portfolio in Italy through innovative partnerships like this one.
“Shell is at the forefront of the global energy transition and, like us, understands the importance of clean energy which we are seeing increase in value and importance to energy consumers in Europe and beyond.”
According to Shell Energy Europe general manager for power Fabio Ganzer Italy is a strategic market for power.
“We’ve been looking at ways to increase our power presence in the country. This deal is another addition to our growing renewable power portfolio and we look forward to partnering with Octopus, a key player in the market,” said Ganzer.
Octopus is the largest non-utility investor in onshore renewables in the UK, and the largest commercial solar player in Europe with a £2.5bn portfolio of clean energy assets, totalling 2026MW.