Sumitomo acquires stake in EUR1.5bn Belgian offshore wind energy portfolio

Sumitomo, a Japanese conglomerate, is set to acquire stakes in €1.5bn offshore wind energy projects in the North Sea from Belgian wind company Parkwind.
Colruyt Group, Korys, the investment holding of the Colruyt family, and PMV are the owners of Belgium wind project developer.

As per the terms of the agreement, the company will acquire 39% stake in the 165MW Belwind 1 project and a 33.3% stake in the 216MW Northwind project through its wholly owned subsidiaries.

Operational Belwind 1, located on the Bligh Bank in the Belgian Exclusive Economic Zone, was developed with an investment of €650m, while Northwind is being constructed on the Lodewijk Bank with €900m investment.

Following the completion of the construction, the two projects are expected to feature 127 wind turbines manufactured by Vestas.

Electrabel, a utility company, will procure the power output from the two wind farms through long-term agreements.

Sumitomo, meanwhile, has also inked a development agreement with Parkwind to jointly construct 165MW Belwind 2 offshore wind farm project located adjacent to the Belwind 1 wind farm.

Through these agreements, the company has made its first investment in global offshore wind industry.

Sumitomo currently owns renewable energy portfolio of 6,129MW, of which wind sector accounts for 524MW, with onshore wind projects located in Japan, China, the US and South Africa.