Renewable

July 21 (Renewables Now) - Madrid-based renewables company EDP Renovaveis SA (ELI:EDPR) said today that it has reached agreements to acquire a 544-MW wind and solar portfolio in the UK, a move that will enable it to enter the country's onshore market.

The transaction, which EDPR says is signed and completed, is the product of two separate agreements with renewable energy companies Vento Ludens and Wind2. The arrangement involves a total consideration of up to GBP 71 million (USD 96.6m/EUR 82m), subject to each project achieving pre-determined milestones, the company added.

The portfolio consists of one 5-MW operating wind farm, commissioned in 2012 and benefiting from a 20-year feed-in-tariff, 229 MW of wind and 118 MW of solar projects under development, and another group of 192 MW of wind projects in advanced stages of development.

The advanced wind projects will take part in the UK's upcoming Contracts for Difference (CfD) rounds and in the private power purchase agreement (PPA) market. EDPR will aim to get this group in operation by 2025, according to the press release.

"The agreements we have reached in the UK, as part of our 2021-25 business plan, are an important milestone for the company", said EDPR's CEO Miguel Stilwell d'Andrade.

"The UK is an old acquaintance for EDPR, as we have been developing offshore wind farms in the country for years. Entering the UK onshore market opens up a new range of possibilities to continue to diversify our business".

in the UK, EDPR has 1 GW of offshore gross capacity under construction and 0.9 GW under development, through Ocean Winds, its joint venture with French utility group Engie SA (EPA:ENGI).

(GBP 1.0 = USD 1.361/EUR 1.155)