Statkraft, Statoil and Masdar have agreed a £1.3 billion re-financing deal to achieve financial close on the 400-MW Dudgeon wind farm project off the Norfolk coast.
Dudgeon is the first UK offshore wind scheme to win a Contract for Difference (CfD). The 67-turbine wind farm is already more than half-completed.
Its first turbine monopile was installed early last month and the developers expect the plant to enter service by the second half of 2017.
Two of the project owners, Norway’s Statoil and Statkraft, will also take part in the financing through sponsor co-lending. Statkraft will fund its 30% share in the project, while Statoil will finance a 17.5% share. The latter owns a 35% interest in Dudgeon, equal to the stake held by the third investor – Abu Dhabi’s Masdar.
Meanwhile, 3sun Group, a specialist provider of products and services to the global energy industry, has opened a new base in Hull which aims to provide up to 50 jobs locally.
3sun Group will support local energy firms such as Siemens who have recently invested in the region as part of their commitments following a number of up and coming offshore wind contracts off the UK coast.