Vattenfall to divest Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone to RWE
Vattenfall has signed an agreement with RWE to divest the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone. The agreed purchase price corresponds to an enterprise value of £963 million. The deal ensures the continued development of the projects and fossil-free electricity for millions of British homes.
The Norfolk Zone consists of three fully consented wind farms – Norfolk Boreas, Norfolk Vanguard West and Norfolk Vanguard East – and is located off the east coast of England. It is one of the largest offshore wind developments in the world, with a total capacity of 4.2 GW, equal to the electricity consumption of 4 million British households.
Vattenfall believes the agreement with RWE is the best way forward both for the company and for the Norfolk projects. With the divestment, Vattenfall increases its ability to invest in fossil-free projects that better fit its overall portfolio and risk appetite, while the future of the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone is secured. This divestment means the impairment and provisions Vattenfall reported earlier this year will be reversed.
Vattenfall will continue to be a significant offshore developer, for example having recently partnered with BASF to develop the 1.5GW Nordlicht cluster outside the coast of Germany.
Likewise, Vattenfall remains committed to the UK, with 1.1GW installed offshore and onshore wind capacity; the 798MW Muir Mhor floating offshore wind farm in development with our JV partner Fred.Olsen Seawind, plus a pipeline of 500MW of onshore wind projects; heat networks under construction in three major UK cities; and one of the UK’s leading independent distribution network operators.
Anna Borg, Chief Executive Officer at Vattenfall AB, said:
“The Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone is incredibly important for the energy transition and reaching net zero. Today’s agreement with RWE is great news for the UK’s energy security, ensuring the Zone’s continued journey towards providing clean electricity for over 4 million homes as well as jobs and investment into the UK. Both the UK and the offshore market remain attractive over the long term, and we will focus our offshore investments in projects which are appropriate to our current risk appetite while continuing to operate and grow our existing fleet of assets.”
The sale of Boreas, Vanguard East and Vanguard West is pending regulatory approvals, and the deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2024. Until then, Vattenfall will continue to develop the Vanguard East and Vanguard West projects. A transitional service agreement for the period after the closing will ensure continuation of the build out.
Read more about the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone here
For further information, please contact:
Johan Sennerö, Vattenfall Media Relations, +46 73 046 40 45, johan.senneroe@vattenfall.com
Tim Dunford, Vattenfall Media Relations UK, +44 77 855 526 66. tim.dunford@vattenfall.com
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