| 15 Mar 2017 – Macquarie Group is selling half of its 50% stake of the Race Bank UK offshore wind farm project, two sources briefed on the matter and a sector adviser following the situation said.
Race Bank is located off the coast of Norfolk and will have an installed capacity of 573MW. Still in construction, the wind farm is due to begin production at the end of 2018, according to a stock exchange announcement. Macquarie acquired its 50% stake of Race Bank from Danish firm DONG Energy [CPH:DENERG] in December 2016. The deal was worth GBP 1.6bn, as reported. A Mergermarket report named Rothschild as the mandated advisor on the deal. The stake purchase was done through an equal investment split between Macquarie Capital and Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund V (MEIFV), as per reports at the time. Macquarie Group had intended to partner with another investor to acquire the stake to reduce risk and exposure before striking the deal with Dong, the first source said. Macquarie Group had originally wanted to acquire 25% of the project, yet Dong did not want another buyer to be involved in the initial deal, as it would have complicated and slowed the transaction down, the first source added. MEIFV itself will not sell any assets at this stage as it is a long-term investor, a person briefed on the company’s strategy said. The fund only launched last year and it has a 12-year investment horizon, the person added. Macquarie is not using a financial adviser for the marketing and sale of the Race Bank stake, the two sources briefed said. Although Macquarie bought 50% of the wind farm for GBP 1.6bn, its 25% stake sale is expected to be sold for a premium of USD 0.8m, the sources added. Macquarie Group declined to comment. by Katie McQue & Patrick Harris |
Katie McQue 