UK: Mainstream successfully concludes sale of SMart Wind offshore wind to DONG Energy

SMart Wind is a joint venture between Mainstream and Siemens Financial Services, which was formed in 2009 to successfully bid for and then to develop the 4,000 megawatt Hornsea Offshore Wind Zone in the UK North Sea as part of The Crown Estate’s licensing round for large-scale offshore wind projects (“Round 3”).

DONG Energy bought the first phase of the Hornsea Zone in February 2015 from Mainstream and Siemens Financial Services. At 1,200 megawatts it is one of the world’s largest fully consented offshore wind farms. Today, in acquiring SMart Wind, DONG will continue the development of the remainder of the Zone.

Welcoming today’s news, Mainstream’s Chief Operations Officer and Chairman of SMart Wind, Andy Kinsella said:

“In 2009 when we set up SMart Wind with Siemens Financial Services, we brought together two companies with significant expertise in offshore wind. Now, as the Hornsea Zone emerges from the development phase I am delighted that ownership will pass to DONG Energy who is the largest global owner and operator of offshore wind farms.

“From the formation of the consortium when we bid into The Crown Estate Round 3 process, my colleagues at SMart Wind have worked heroically to win the Hornsea Zone, to develop the first projects, and to obtain planning consent for the 1,200 megawatt Phase 1 in February 2015. We have taken the Zone from being an outline on a map to a true Northern powerhouse, which has the capacity to deliver very large amounts of clean electricity into the National Grid.

He concluded: “At a time when the UK is decommissioning old fossil fired power stations, and scaling back its ambitions for low carbon generation onshore, the delivery of new renewable energy at scale from the North Sea represents a significant industrial and economic opportunity for the country. I am delighted that SMart Wind has led the way in this transformation, and that DONG will now continue and complete what we have started.”