CIP to divest stake in Taiwanese offshore wind farm

GPSC operates as a subsidiary and innovative power flagship of PTT Public Company Limited (PTT), one of the largest energy companies in Thailand. By partnering with GPSC, CFXD also contributes to the New Southbound Policy of Taiwan by enhancing the co-operation between Taiwan and Thailand within the area of renewable energy.

Located 13 - 15 km off the coast of Changhua County in Taiwan, the CFXD wind farm has a planned capacity of 595 MW. CFXD reached financial close in February 2020 and construction of the offshore wind park with a high share of local Taiwanese content is progressing as planned towards commercial operations date in 1Q2024. CFXD is financed through a combination of equity and senior loans from a consortium of 25 international and Taiwanese banks and financial institutions, as well as six export credit agencies. CIP acquired the CFXD project in 2017. The project obtained grid allocation in 2018 and entered into a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with the state-owned Taiwan Power Company in 2019. Local Taiwanese suppliers and partners include Century Iron & Steel Industrial Company Limited, TECO, Hung Hua Construction and CTCI.

GPSC will, through GRSC, enter into the project as a co-owner alongside CI-II and CI-III, as well as the local Taiwanese shareholders, which hold a minority stake in the project. CIP will continue to lead the project through its construction phase. Once operational, the offshore wind farm will deliver clean, renewable power to over 600 000 households per year in Taiwan.

“We welcome GPSC as co-investor and partner in CFXD. The transaction underpins the significant potential of offshore wind in Taiwan and in other Asian countries and recognizes CIP’s value add to the project during the development phase and initial construction phase” says Michael Hannibal, Partner at CIP.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, filing for Foreign Investment Approval and filings with the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Taiwan R.O.C., and following closing of the transaction, CI-II and CI-III will remain controlling shareholders and operators of the CFXD offshore wind farm.

FIH Partners acted as exclusive financial advisor and White & Case acted as legal advisor to CIP on the transaction.

CIP is a fund management company focused on energy infrastructure including offshore wind, onshore wind, solar photovoltaic (PV), biomass and energy-from-waste, transmission and distribution, reserve capacity and storage, and other energy assets like Power-to-X. It has approximately 200 employees and offices in Copenhagen, Denmark; Hamburg, Germany; New York, US; Tokyo, Japan; Utrecht, the Netherlands; and London, England.

CIP manages eight funds and has approximately €16 billion under management. PensionDanmark was the founding and sole investor in CI I and CI A I. Today CIP’s funds have approximately 100 international institutional investors from the Nordics, Continental Europe, the UK, Israel, Asia, Australia, and North America and multi-lateral organisations e.g. EIB.

It was founded in 2012 by senior executives from the energy industry in co-operation with PensionDanmark.

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