Partners Group sell down 15% stake in the 731.5 MW Borssele III/IV offshore wind farms in Netherlands

Deal Details: Nuveen Infrastructure, in collaboration with MN, will acquire a stake in the $1.5bn offshore wind farm, located off the coast of the Zeeland province. The project was developed by the Blauwwind consortium, which also comprises Shell, Eneco, Diamond Generating Europe (a unit of Mitsubishi Corporation), and Van Oord. The project has been operational since Nov’20 and has the capacity to generate ~3 TWh of electricity annually. Initially awarded under the Dutch SDE+ scheme at a power price of $63.27/MWh, the consortium has subsequently entered into long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Microsoft, Shell, and Eneco Group, covering more than 62% of the total power produced. Following the completion of the transaction, Partners Group will retain a minority ownership stake of 10% in the project.

Deal Rationale: The recent sale aligns with Partners Group’s investment strategy, which focuses on identifying thematic investing opportunities and driving value throughout the different stages of asset development, resulting in sustainable double-digit EBITDA growth. Partners Group initially entered the asset in Jan’18, acquiring a 45% stake, thereby becoming the largest investor. Following the start of commercial operations, the company opted to monetize its investment by divesting a 20% stake in the asset to Swiss Life Asset Managers in Sept’22. This decision is reminiscent of Partners Group’s previous sale of the Australian renewables platform CWP for $2.7bn, demonstrating their commitment to strategic portfolio management and capitalising on investment opportunities.
 

For Nuveen Infrastructure, the deal represents the second investment made under its partnership with Dutch pension administrators and asset managers MN, the $689mn Nuveen European Core Renewable Infrastructure (NECRI) strategy. The partnership, launched in Sept’22, focuses on identifying investment opportunities among renewable energy projects located on brownfield sites across continental Europe. The partners target investments in countries such as the Netherlands, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, and the Nordics.