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Marubeni purchase is first Japanese investment in UK offshore wind farm


Japanese trading company Marubeni has become the first Asian investor in UK wind power, according to reports.

The company has purchased almost half of the 172MW Gunfleet Sands wind farm, off the coast of Essex, from Danish operator DONG Energy.

The £200 million investment for the 49.9% stake in the wind farm is conditional on Marubeni obtaining project financing commitments from financial institutions, the companies said in a statement.

Marubeni is expected to complete the purchase towards the end of 2011.

Energy law expert Nick Shenken of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, described the deal as further evidence of the increasing popularity of UK wind power as an investment option.

"The first investment from Asia in UK offshore is an excellent sign and yet further evidence that UK wind, both on and offshore, is increasingly seen as an investment class worth pursuing as an alternative to what might be described as more traditional destinations for equity investment," he said. "This kind of investment will be critical to the success of the offshore programme in this country."Marubeni and DONG have also agreed a long-term purchase agreement for the power production and green certificates generated by the Japanese company's share in the wind farm. DONG will continue to provide operation and maintenance services to the wind farm under a long-term arrangement.

"We are delighted to have reached an agreement with DONG Energy for this important partnership; it is especially significant as it is the first investment by a Japanese company into an offshore wind power project," said Masumi Kakinoki, Marubeni's executive officer. "We believe the offshore wind power sector represents a tremendous growth opportunity not only in Europe but in Japan and the Americas as well."

"We believe the further development of the offshore wind industry will be based on bringing together different kinds of investors with an interest in this field," said Anders Eldrup, chief executive of DONG.

Gunfleet Sands wind farm is located in the Thames Estuary off the Essex coast and produces enough energy to power 125,000 British households annually, according to its owner's figures. The wind farm began generating power in August 2009 and the whole facility opened for production in the spring of 2010.

"Gunfleet Sands is an operational project so the construction risk is removed, making it more attractive for investors," said Shenken.

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