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The carbon tax freeze announced in last week’s Budget has not dampened enthusiasm for buying into wind power, according to one leading investor.
Greencoat UK Wind expects to invest between £100 million and £200 million in windfarms next year, a partner in the fund told Utility Week. That could add stakes in three or four windfarms to a portfolio of 10 acquired since its flotation in March 2013.
The fund’s managers remain upbeat about the sector’s prospects despite an intervention by the chancellor that will hit revenues for operating windfarms.
George Osborne announced last week he was fixing the carbon price support at 2015/16 levels of £18 a tonne of carbon dioxide instead of hiking it as planned. The move relieves a burden on fossil fuel generators, suppressing the wholesale power price and hitting revenues for low carbon generators.
Industry body Renewable UK warned the freeze would jeopardise investment.
However, Greencoat had anticipated the move, said partner Stephen Lilley. “We pinpointed what was going to happen with the carbon price support a while ago and factored that into our numbers.”
To date, Greencoat has bought from RWE, SSE and German energy company Baywa. From the utility perspective, such deals free up capital to reinvest in new projects.
Greencoat is in conversations with “almost everyone” in the sector regarding potential acquisitions in future, Lilley added. “There is an awful lot in the pipeline.”
According to final year results published on Monday, Greencoat UK Wind is worth £350 million and made pre-tax profits of £18 million in 2013.
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