Madrid-based renewable energy developer Capital Energy has hired international advisory firm Lazard to sell 4.3GW of assets in onshore wind and solar power plants in Spain, according to Reuters news agency.
The assets on offer are estimated to be worth up to $1bn, although the final evaluation is subject to ongoing due diligence procedures, Reuters stated, attributing the information to two sources with knowledge of the deal.
The sale —named "Project One" — consists of 48 projects ready to start construction within the next 15 months, Reuters reported.
The bidders could either offer to buy the projects that are closer to completion, a separate parcel of less developed assets, or both, the sources said.
Capital Energy and Lazard did not comment on the reported sale process.
Goldwind to swoop?
The Iberian peninsula has become a hotbed of investment for solar power and onshore wind, and both Spain and Portugal intend to accelerate this expansion under their respective net zero plans..
Should an asset sale move forward, one possible suitor is Goldwind, a giant Chinese wind turbine manufacturer that has been looking to expand into new renewables businesses and technologies.
Spanish business newspaper lnvertia reported earlier this month that Goldwind is actively seeking to buy renewable energy projects in Spain and has been “making offers to the main promoters with wind farms under development”.
The same Invertia report, which quoted unnamed sources in the Spanish wind industry, suggested that Goldwind is showing a a particular interest in already-permitted ready-to-build projects.
The newspaper quoted other industry sources as saying Goldwind would look to deploy its own machines at the projects and could even look to site manufacturing facilities in the country to tap into opportunities under the EU’s Green Deal Industrial Plan.
Last month, Capital Energy signed a collaboration agreement with French green hydrogen technology company Lhyfe for the joint development of offshore renewable hydrogen projects at offshore wind farm sites currently being developed by Capital Energy in Spain and Portugal.
In statements outlining that agreement, the pair said Capital Energy's wider portfolio in Spain and Portugal amounts to projects that total 25GW of onshore wind and solar energy power, as well as projects for 7.5GW of offshore wind capacity.
