The Crossdykes Onshore Wind Farm will soon have a 51% ownership interest owned by Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust. Another Octopus managed fund is buying the remaining 49%.
Muirhall Energy created Crossdykes, which is situated in southern Scotland and has been in use since June 2021.
It is one of the biggest operating unsubsidized wind farms in the UK, with a 48MW installed capacity total and 10 4.8MW Nordex turbines as its core.
According to Octopus, the wind farm now enjoys set pricing through its PPA through March 2025.
The transaction is anticipated to be completed in the fall of 2022, pending receipt of regulatory approvals.
Three assets are currently under development and are anticipated to become operational between Q3 2022 and the end of Q2 2023, giving ORIT’s operating portfolio a total capacity of 608MW (conditional acquisitions excluded).
Based on gross asset value, Crossdykes will make up about 5% of the company’s portfolio.
Utilizing the RCF’s accordion feature, the company expanded its revolving credit facility (RCF) in conjunction with the transaction, bringing the total committed facility to £246 million (€290 million).
Crossdykes and other near-term pipeline opportunities will be made possible by ORIT’s enlarged RCF, which was entered into under the same conditions as the present facility.
The Company also notes that Octopus Renewables Limited, its investment manager, has changed its trade name from Octopus Renewables to Octopus Energy Generation as a result of Octopus Energy’s July 2021 acquisition of the investment manager.
The new trading name has no impact on the Investment Manager’s operations or agreements, and neither have personnel changes.
Phil Austin, Chairman of Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust, said “This significant investment into one of the largest unsubsidised wind farms in the UK adds a substantial operational asset to our portfolio.”
“Once completed, this will be ORIT’s twelfth acquisition since IPO, with the portfolio now comprising 35 assets, highlighting the ability of our Investment Manager to build a high-quality portfolio of renewable energy assets, which in turn is critical to the UK’s target of becoming net zero by 2050.”
