Masdar to acquire Spanish renewable developer Saeta in $762 million deal

The Brookfield Renewable-owned operator of wind power assets has an enterprise value of $1.3 billion

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and chairman of Masdar, with Mark Carney, chair and head of transition investing at Brookfield. Photo: Masdar

Abu Dhabi clean energy company Masdar has signed definitive agreements with Brookfield Renewable and its institutional partners to fully acquire Spanish renewable energy company Saeta Yield.

Masdar is investing Dh2.8 billion ($762.4 million) in the Seata deal, which has an implied enterprise value of $1.3 billion, with the transaction expected to close towards the end of this year, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (Taqa), which owns a 43 per cent stake in Masdar, said in a filing to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange on Tuesday.

Saeta is an independent developer, owner and operator of renewable power assets. The planned transaction consists of a portfolio of 745 megawatts of predominantly wind assets – 538MW of wind assets in Spain, 144MW of wind assets in Portugal, 63MW solar PV assets in Spain and a 1.6-gigawatt development pipeline.

“Masdar is committed to accelerating the delivery of clean energy capacity across the Iberian Peninsula and Europe … and this landmark deal with Brookfield Renewable builds on Masdar’s strong growth story, demonstrating our commitment to the EU’s wider net zero by 2050 target and unlocking new capacity,” said Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, and chairman of Masdar.

“Masdar is further accelerating its ambitious growth plans, as well as supporting the delivery of the UAE Consensus ratified at Cop28, to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, enabling a just, orderly and equitable energy transition.”

The planned transaction is one of Spain’s largest renewable energy deals and cements Masdar’s position in the country, which is one of Europe’s largest renewable markets.

The latest deal comes after Masdar’s July announced an $887 million investment to acquire about 50 per cent stake in Spanish utility Endesa's solar energy assets. Under the deal, which has an enterprise value of €1.7 billion, Masdar will become a partner for 2.5 gigawatts of renewable energy assets in Spain, subject to regulatory approvals.

The Abu Dhabi company is rapidly expanding its presence in Europe as part of its push to grow its global geographical footprint to achieve its aim of a capacity of 100 gigawatts by 2030.

The company has been on an investment spree in recent quarters, particularly in Europe, which has made significant strides in clean energy adoption in recent years to reach its net-zero targets by 2050.

In June, Masdar signed an agreement to acquire Greece’s Terna Energy for an enterprise value of €3.2 billion, in what it said was the largest energy transaction on the Athens Stock Exchange.

In March, Masdar and Spain’s Iberdrola also reached a financial close on the 476MW Baltic Eagle offshore wind project located in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Germany.

Masdar’s existing presence in Spain includes the Almenara 1.2-gigawatt solar photovoltaic project in the Castilla La Mancha region, which is currently under development. The deal with Saeta Yield excludes a regulated portfolio of 350MW of concentrated solar power assets, which Brookfield will retain and continue to operate.

“Saeta is a perfect complement to Masdar’s portfolio in Europe, following our recent partnership with Endesa for 2.5-gigawatt of solar energy,” said Mohamed Al Ramahi, chief executive of Masdar.

Saeta is “a well-established renewable platform, with a strong operational portfolio and management team, and tangible near-term and long-term growth opportunities”, which supports Masdar’s global expansion plans, he said.

Masdar is jointly owned by, Taqa, Adnoc and Mubadala Investment Company and is active in 40 countries. It currently generates about 20 gigawatts of renewable energy.

On Monday, the company announced the financial close for the 154MW Cibuk 2 wind farm in Serbia.

The €144 million non-recourse project financing was secured through UniCredit, Erste Group and Erste Bank Serbia, which, Masdar said, is a “testament to the feasibility and the viability of renewable energy projects in Serbia”.