Greencoat adds €10.9m wind farm to portfolio
Greencoat Renewables has made its 10th acquisition since forming early last year, with the €10.9m purchase of the 9.2-megawatt Knocknalour wind farm in Wexford.
The Irish wind farm operator bought the asset from a group of local developers and funded the deal from its €250m credit facility.
Earlier this week, Greencoat reported a first-half profit of €11.7m, compared to a loss of just over €3.9m for the same period last year.
Earlier this month, the company, part-owned by the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, announced a deal to buy a portfolio of four wind farms from State-owned forestry body Coillte.
“Both large and small wind farms represent important opportunity sets for the company,” said Davy analyst Michael Mitchell.
Importantly, it continues to demonstrate that it can capitalise on this opportunity. Greencoat has now grown assets under management to around 308 megawatts, an increase of 125% this year alone. It is building a substantial portfolio.
Knocknalour was commissioned in 2013 but Greencoat said its revenues are contracted under the Refit scheme, providing a long-term guaranteed minimum floor-price for the electricity it generates.
“The asset is slightly older than other wind farms in the portfolio,” said Mr Mitchell.
“While it clearly will not enjoy the same length of Refit-guaranteed minimum floor price for output generated, this can often result in assets being available at more attractive terms.”
