John Laing Group plc completes its first investment in an offshore wind farm

John Laing Group has acquired a 30% stake in the 111 MW Nordergrunde offshore wind farm​ in the German North Sea, just north of the city of Wilhelmshaven.

The Nordergründe project is John Laing’s second German wind investment and its first investment in offshore wind. The project achieved financial close in June 2015 with senior debt being provided by the European Investment Bank (EIB), KfW IPEX Bank and other commercial lenders.  In addition to John Laing, other shareholders in Nordergründe are wpd AG (30%) and Gothaer Leben Renewables GmbH (40%).

Nordergründe will be delivered and operated by the wpd Group, a large German developer and operator of off-shore and on-shore windfarms, both domestically and internationally, and electricity generation will come from 18 Senvion 6.2 M126 turbines.  All foundation piles have been installed and turbine erection is underway.  The grid connection is in place, onshore cable and substation works have been completed and offshore cabling works have already begun. The project will benefit from the German feed in tariff mechanism and construction is expected to be completed in Q2 2017.

John Laing received financial advice from Green Giraffe, technical advice from DNV GL, legal advice came from CMS and Tax and accounting advice from PwC.

Ross McArthur, Managing Director of Renewable Energy for John Laing, said:

“The Nordergründe off shore wind project in Germany is an important step for John Laing into a new market where we see a significant opportunity, and in a country we want to continue to invest into. We are pleased to be working with a partner of the quality of wpd given their track record of successful development of offshore wind projects and their skilled and experienced team."