Equinor has entered into an agreement with Eni to sell a 10 percent equity interest in the Dogger Bank wind farm A and B assets in the UK for a total consideration of around £202.5 million.
Eni also entered into an agreement to buy a 10 percent stake in Dogger Bank A and B from project partner SSE on the same terms. When the deal is completed, the new cumulative shares in Dogger Bank A (1.2 GW) and Dogger Bank B (1.2 GW) will be – SSE (40 percent), Equinor (40 percent) and Eni (20 percent).
Eni will join the assets effective from the close of funding for the project. The consideration of around £202.5 million represents the payment to Equinor of a 10 percent equity interest in both Dogger Bank A and Dogger Bank B. Equinor’s shareholder loan financing of around £185 million has been repaid at the end of the financial year.
“This is our third offshore wind transaction in less than two years. Once again, we have demonstrated Equinor’s ability to create value from renewables projects. The divestment is in line with our strategy. We access attractive acreage early and at scale, then leverage our technology and experience to mature and de-risk projects. Today’s deal underpins our track record in consistently capturing value from world class assets.”
Pål Eitrheim, executive vice president in New Energy Solutions in Equinor.
Equinor and SSE Renewables secured 3.6 GW of offshore wind contracts for Dogger Bank’s three phases, Dogger Bank A, Dogger Bank B and Dogger Bank C in the UK Government’s 2019 Contract for Difference auctions.
The first two phases of Dogger Bank reached recently financial close at competitive terms, underlining the attractiveness of the UK offshore wind assets and the confidence in the joint venture. Dogger Bank C is being developed on a different timescale with financial close to follow at a later stage. There is no change to the ownership of the third phase, Dogger Bank C (1.2 GW), in which Equinor and SSE each have a 50% stake.
“Dogger Bank is the largest wind farm in the world under construction, and we are pleased to welcome Eni as a new partner. Through the sheer scale of the project we have delivered record-low contract prices for the UK market, and as operator of the wind farm we will continue to deliver value to the UK for years to come. Together with our partners we will continue to drive the energy transition to a net zero emissions future for the UK”
Pål Eitrheim.
“For Eni, entering the offshore wind market in Northern Europe is a great opportunity to gain further skills in the sector thanks to the collaboration with two of the industry’s leading companies, and to make a substantial contribution to the 2025 target of 5 GW of installed capacity from renewables, an intermediate step towards the more ambitious target of zero net direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions in Europe by 2050.”
Claudio Descalzi, chief executive officer of Eni.
The transaction is expected to close in early 2021, subject to regulatory and lenders approvals and customary purchase price adjustments.
