Masdar reaches first financial close on acquisition of eight renewables projects in the US

The company expects more opportunities in the market as President Biden’s administration puts greater emphasis on green energy

Turbines are seen at the Tafila wind farm in southern Jordan. Masdar on Monday said it reached first financial close on the acquisition of eight renewable projects in the US from EDF Renewables North Show more

Abu Dhabi clean energy company Masdar reached first financial close on the acquisition of eight renewable projects in the US from EDF Renewables North America.

Masdar bought a 50 per cent stake in the projects located across three different states in the US last year. These include three utility-scale wind projects in Nebraska and Texas with a total capacity of 815 megawatts, and five solar photovoltaic schemes in California with a combined 689MW capacity.

“This is a significant milestone in our collaboration with EDF Renewables North America, with these projects now actively contributing to US renewable energy objectives,” Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, chief executive of Masdar, said in a statement on Monday.

“As the second-largest renewable energy producer in the world in terms of installed power capacity, the US offers considerable scope for further growth, and with President Joe Biden having made clean energy investment a key priority for his administration, we clearly anticipate greater opportunities in this market.”

All three wind projects are currently in the final stages of construction and expected to begin commercial operations in the first quarter of this year, Masdar said. Of the five solar projects in California, four had begun by December last year while the fifth in Kern county will begin operations later this year.

“The US renewables market represents a highly attractive growth potential,” Bruno Bensasson, chairman and chief executive of EDF Renewables, said. “It is also a major market for EDF Renewables where we have achieved a leading position in the last three decades, both in solar and wind energies but also in battery energy storage systems.”

The power from the projects will be sold under long-term contracts to a variety of off-takers, including utilities and hedge providers.

Masdar is currently active in more than 30 countries with a total renewable energy capacity of 10.7 gigawatts. The company is aiming to double its capacity over the next five years and is targeting new projects in South East Asia, Central Asia and Israel.

EDF Renewables is a subsidiary of EDF Renouvelables, the renewable energy affiliate of the French utilities company EDF Group.

Masdar is owned by Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Company.