Van Oord Sells Gemini Stake

Van Oord has sold its 10% stake in the 600MW Gemini offshore wind farm to the ALTE LEIPZIGER-HALLESCHE insurance group.

The sale of the stake in the largest operating Dutch offshore wind farm is in line with Van Oord’s policy to invest in offshore wind projects in early stages, Robert de Bruin, Head Corporate Communication & Markets at Van Oord, told Offshore WIND.

An investment vehicle established for the German insurance companies ALTE LEIPZIGER Lebensversicherung and HALLESCHE Krankenversicherung acquired the shares in the offshore wind farm, while wpd invest advised on the acquisition.

ALTE LEIPZIGER-HALLESCHE committed to investing a three-digit million Euro amount in offshore wind projects, with the focus on the long-term operation of a portfolio of projects, as this corresponds to its commitment profile, wpd invest said.

“Our success in this transaction is based on the broad industrial know-how available within wpd, as much as our strong investor base. We are convinced, that we can bring great execution speed and a high degree of transaction security also to future deals,” said Georg Obert, Managing Director of wpd invest GmbH.

Located in the Dutch North Sea, the 600MW Gemini offshore wind farm comprises 150 Siemens 4MW turbines and two offshore substations – Buitengaats and ZeeEnergie.

The wind farm was officially opened in early May 2017.

Apart from the ALTE LEIPZIGER-HALLESCHE group, the wind farm’s remaining stakeholders include Northland Power (60%), Siemens Project Ventures (20%) and HVC (10%).