Octopus Grabs 199-MW Solar Portfolio from Statkraft Ireland

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Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust (ORIT) has announced that it finalized the acquisition of four newly-built solar farms situated in close proximity to Dublin, Ireland. The four solar installations collectively boast a capacity of 199MW and were procured from Statkraft Ireland, the developer, and constructor of the projects, overseen by ORIT.

With this acquisition, ORIT’s portfolio of operational renewable energy assets now stands at 735MW.

As per Octopus, the four solar projects contribute enough clean energy to supply approximately 50,000 households and are estimated to prevent approximately 60,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

Originally, the solar farms were part of a conditional agreement between Octopus and Statkraft Ireland, with the completion contingent on the sites achieving full operational status. They commenced commercial operations in late December 2023, leading to ORIT’s successful acquisition.

The total acquisition cost amounted to €160 million, partially financed through an €80.6 million debt facility facilitated by Allied Irish Banks and La Banque Postale.

In line with the announcement made in November 2022, Microsoft has committed to a 15-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) to procure the electricity generated by the solar farms, ensuring future revenue streams for ORIT from this solar complex.

Additionally, a fifth site nearby, with a capacity of 42MW, is presently under construction and is anticipated to commence operations in Q3 2024. Following a similar arrangement to the initial four sites, ORIT will acquire this project upon its operational readiness, expected around Q3 2024. The financing for this acquisition will include an increase in the debt facility by up to €25.8m, a pre-agreed arrangement with the lenders.

Phil Austin, Chairman, Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust,  stated, “We are pleased to have completed this substantial acquisition, which sees ORIT become the owner of Ireland’s largest solar complex which will deliver a substantial amount of green electricity. Projects like this are vital to accelerating the journey to net zero.”

In 2021 also, Octopus had acquired a portfolio of five Irish solar sites from Statkraft Ireland having a combined capacity of up to 250MW with consideration ranging between €138 million and €145 million.

To strengthen its position in the wind power sector, the company launched its first ever Octopus Energy Offshore Wind Fund with a corpus of £3 billion meant for the investment in in offshore wind globally by 2030. The focus of the fund, although, will remain in Europe.