FREDERICIA, Denmark – Ørsted has agreed to sell a 50 % ownership stake in its 1.3-GW Hornsea 2 wind farm in the UK North Sea for £3 billion ($3.94 billion).
The facilities are under construction 89 km (5 mi) off the Yorkshire coast in the Hornsea zone, and will form the world’s largest offshore wind farm once commissioned later this year, Orsted said.
At that point, assuming regulatory approvals for the transaction, AXA IM Alts – acting on behalf of various clients – and Crédit Agricole Assurances will each own 25 % of the project.
They plan to fund their combined 50 % stake through equity and a senior multi-tranche staple financing package provided by 30 banks.
Hornsea 2 should generate sufficient electricity from its 165 wind turbines to power more than 1.3 million homes annually. Ørsted says it will provide operations and maintenance services for 20 years from its O&M base at the port of Grimsby.
