Germany

Germany

Acciona sells 150MW German wind portfolio

GERMANY: Acciona is set to exit the German wind market, with an agreement to sell its 150.3MW wind portfolio.

The sale covers 85 installed turbines
The sale covers 85 installed turbines

The sale to Swisspower Renewables is part of a move by the Spanish manufacturer and developer to offset the effect of recent regulatory changes in its home market that have hit the company hard.

The 18 wind farms included in the deal will be sold for EUR 157 million, with a net financial debt of EUR 85 million.

The projects are all 100% owned by ACCIONA and have been grid connected progressively since 2002 until 2009. They have a weighted average life of eight years.

The majority, 130.5MW, is located in Brandenburg in the east of the country, with the remaining 19.8 MW in Lower Saxony in north west Germany.

Earlier in December the Spanish conglomerate reported a 75% slump in pre-tax profits for the first nine months of the year, with the wind-dominated energy division dragging it down. Acciona blamed Spanish regulatory changes that saw new taxes introduced and a reduction in the feed in tariffs.

The company estimates that the changes, along with 2012's alterations to the tax regime for renewable energy projects, have lost the company EUR 137 million.

In November, Acciona signed an agreement to sell its 61.5MW of online capacity in South Korea for KRW 162 billion (EUR 114 million) in another attempt to offset losses in the Spanish market.

Acciona said that this latest transaction is not subject to any conditions and the closing is expected to occur on 23 January.

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