Sumitomo Corp. says it has signed a contract to invest alongside Macquarie Capital in the Galloper Offshore Wind Farm, located in the North Sea, 27 kilometers off the coast of Suffolk, in the U.K. Specifically, Sumitomo says it will indirectly take a 12.5% stake in the project, with the transaction due to be completed in the coming months.
The Japanese company says the equity sponsors of Galloper – RWE Innogy UK, Siemens Financial Services, UK Green Investment Bank plc and Macquarie Capital – achieved financial close in October 2015.
The Galloper Offshore Wind Farm, with a depth of 27 meters to 36 meters, comprises 56 turbines manufactured by the Siemens Group and claims a total production capacity of up to 336 MW. Costing approximately 1,500 million British pounds in total, the wind farm has been under construction since financial close.
According to Sumitomo, the electricity generated is to be sold through long-term purchase power agreements with off-takers across the U.K., catering to the needs of approximately 336,000 households. Commercial production is scheduled to commence in 2018, and it is expected to provide clean energy for 25 years.
Sumitomo says it invested in three offshore wind farms – 165 MW Belwind, 216 MW Northwind and 165 MW Nobelwind – in Belgium in September 2014 and that it is actively seeking more offshore wind business opportunities in the U.K.
