Ørsted, formerly DONG Energy, has agreed a £4.5bn deal to sell a 50 per cent stake in the Hornsea 1 offshore wind farm, which is set to be largest project of its kind when it is completed.

When it is commissioned in 2020 the wind farm will have a total capacity of 1,218 megawatts (MW), enough to power more than one million homes.

It will cover an area of 407 sq km and will be located in the North Sea, 120km from the UK east coast.

Ørsted has signed an agreement to sell 50 per cent of the project to Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP).

Under the terms of the deal, Ørsted will construct the wind farm under a full-scope EPC contract, provide long-term operations and maintenance services from its O&M base in Grimsby and provide a route to market for the power generated.

The total sale price of £4.46bn includes the acquisition of a 50 per cent ownership share and the commitment to fund 50 per cent of the payments under the EPC contract for the entire wind farm.

GIP will partially finance the acquisition using a multi-tranche financing package of more than £3.5bn.

Ole Kjems Sørensen, executive vice president for M&A, partnerships and asset management at Ørsted, said: "This is our third partnership with GIP, and we are delighted to have one of the world's largest infrastructure funds as a partner, in what will be the world's largest offshore wind farm. The Hornsea 1 farm down is a landmark transaction which will create substantial value for our shareholders and reduce single asset exposure."

Source : Insider Media