Marubeni to buy UK wind-farm firm

Marubeni Corp. 8002.TO +2.40 percent said Monday it will buy a UK offshore-wind-farm installation company, Seajacks International Ltd, together with a Japanese government-backed investment fund.

The Japanese trading house and the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, the government-sponsored fund, will purchase a 100 percent stake in Seajacks from US private-equity fund Riverstone Holdings LLC AP4.SG -1.15 percent for about $850 million, a Marubeni spokeswoman said.

It is the first full-scale entry by a Japanese enterprise into the offshore-wind-power installation business, which is technologically more difficult than land-based wind-power projects, Marubeni said in a statement.

The acquisition will enable Marubeni to undertake offshore wind-farm projects around the world. Marubeni and INCJ will share ownership of Seajacks, with each taking a 50 percent stake.

The number and scale of offshore wind farms are expected to increase going forward, with 40 gigawatts of new capacity planned in the next decade in the North Sea alone, the statement said.

Marubeni has been building up its investments in power projects, mainly overseas, since the 1960s. It owned 8.7 gigawatts of power capacity as of December 31, the largest capacity of Japan’s nonutility companies.

The most recent addition was the 172-megawatt Gunfleet Sand offshore wind-farm project in the UK, in which the Japanese trading company bought a 49.9 percent stake.

Marubeni intends to extend its presence in the offshore-wind-power sector by providing engineering, procurement and construction services through Seajacks, the statement said.-By MARI IWATA

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304724404577291430446896956.html

 

Category: Japan