Developer Mainstream Renewable Power (MRP) has sold the 450MW Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) wind farm off Scotland’s east coast to France’s EDF Group following a competitive bidding process.

“This large-scale new offshore project demonstrates our strong ambition in being a leading global player in the offshore wind industry. It confirms EDF Group’s wider commitment to renewables in countries where EDF already has a strong footprint such as the UK,” says Bruno Bensasson, EDF’s senior executive president responsible for renewable energies and chief executive officer of EDF Energies Nouvelles’ Group.

Bensasson says the project is consistent with its overall CAP 2030 strategy that aims at doubling EDF’s renewable energy generation by 2030.

MRP has signaled that the timing of the NnG sale – exclusively predicted by Recharge last month – marks its exit from future involvement in offshore wind projects. The company has developed some of the UK’s biggest wind farms, including the NnG and Hornsea projects.

The Dublin-headquartered developer says its new global priorities will now see its portfolio largely focused on renewables projects in Africa, South America and Asia.

The fully consented £1.8bn ($2.45bn) NnG offshore wind project, located in the Firth of Forth, secured a 15-year Contract for Difference (CfD) in the UK’s first CfD auction in February 2015, at a record low price for the time of £114.39/MWh (at 2012 prices).

Commissioning of the wind farm is planned for 2023. The 450MW project, which can generate enough electricity to power around 375,000 homes, will use 8MW turbines from Siemens Gamesa.

“We are very pleased to be bringing in such an established partner and supporter of the Scottish energy industry as EDF Renewables to this vital infrastructure project for Scotland,” says Andy Kinsella, MRP’s chief executive officer.

“The completion of this sale adds to Mainstream’s global track record as the leading independent developer of some of the most significant and complex wind and solar projects across Europe, South America, Africa and Asia. The NnG offshore wind farm has been fully developed by Mainstream and we are delighted to be handing over this world-class project.”

The divestment plans were on hold while MRP and other project owners awaited the outcome of RSPB Scotland’s lengthy – but ultimately unsuccessful – legal challenge to NnG and other projects on environmental grounds.

EDF Renewables, the renewables arm of France’s EDF Group, is one of the UK’s leading developers with a focus on onshore and offshore wind, as well as battery storage. The company already operates more than 786MW of wind farms – including 319MW in Scotland – and has more than 1GW under development.

Wind

EDF buys 450MW Neart Na Gaoithe from Mainstream