©GE Renewable Energy
Dutch pensionfund ABP, through its pension provider APG, acquired a 64% stake in the 396 MW German offshore wind farm Merkur Offshore, located approximately 45 km off the north German coast.
The acquisition is in line with ABP’ ambition to increase the investments in renewable energy over the coming years. ABP acquired the stake from a consortium comprising of funds managed and/or advised by Partners Group (50%), InfraRed Capital Partners (25%), DEME Concessions (12.5%), GE Energy Financial Services (6.25%) and ADEME (6.25%).
Patrick Kanters, Managing Director Global Real Assets at APG: “As a pension investor, we are continuously looking for attractive, responsible infrastructure investments worldwide that help us realize stable and long-term returns for ABP and other pension fund clients we work for. Our investment in this large wind farm Merkur Offshore, on behalf of ABP, fits the core of our strategy. Not only do we expect solid returns, it also marks a major step in the growth of our renewable infrastructure portfolio, providing sustainable energy to hundred thousands of households. We look forward working together alongside InfraRed in the years to come.”
The remaining 36% of the wind farm will be acquired in partnership with funds managed by InfraRed Capital Partners Limited, a leading international investment manager focused on infrastructure and real estate. It is the second investment in an offshore wind farm, following a previous investment in the British Walney 1 project.
Merkur Offshore
The 396 MW German offshore wind farm has been operational since june of this year. It consists of 66 wind turbines from GE, type Haliade 150-6MW, with each a nominal power of 6 MW. The turbines are installed on XL monopiles, with diameters up to 8 m, lengths up to 73 m and a total weight of around 970 t. The power generated by each turbine is collected in an offshore substation where it is converted from 33 kV to 155 kV and transported to TenneT’ DolWin gamma HVDC converter platform.
