Transmission Capital Partners has achieved financial close on the £33.6m Barrow offshore transmission project. This is the third project under Britain’s offshore transmission (“OFTO”) system following Transmission Capital’s Robin Rigg and Gunfleet Sands projects earlier this year.
Transmission Capital Partners, the consortium comprising Transmission Capital, International Public Partnerships Limited and Amber Infrastructure has achieved financial close on the Barrow offshore transmission project. This is the third Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) Licence to be awarded under the competitive tender process managed by energy regulator Ofgem for the licensing of the high voltage transmission links to Great Britain’s offshore wind farms. Transmission Capital Partners also runs the two other OFTOs to have received licences to date: Robin Rigg and Gunfleet Sands.
The project provides the electrical connection for the Barrow offshore wind farm, a 90MW facility located 7km south-west of Walney island, near Barrow-in-Furness. The transmission assets comprise the onshore and offshore substations and under-sea cables connecting the offshore wind farm with the onshore grid network. The OFTO Licence will be held by a newly created company, TC Barrow OFTO Limited, which has acquired the £33.6 million link from the wind farm owner, Barrow Offshore WInd Ltd, a consortium of DONG Energy and Centrica.
The Transmission Capital consortium has been awarded preferred bidder status for a further OFTO project in the inaugural tender round which, together with the three projects already closed, has an investment value in excess of £250 million. The consortium is also shortlisted for the first three projects under Ofgem’s second OFTO tender, with a total value in excess of £1 billion. These are due to be awarded in 2012.