KfW IPEX-Bank joins project financing of Dudgeon wind farm

Acting as a Mandated Lead Arranger KfW IPEX-Bank has joined the limited recourse financing for Dudgeon, one of the world’s largest offshore wind farms. The GBP 1.3 billion long-term financing which KfW IPEX-Bank is providing together with eight other international banks will fund the capital requirements of the 402-megawatt project. Dudgeon Wind Farm is currently under construction 32 kilometres out to sea from the North Norfolk coast of East England. It will comprise 67 wind turbines delivered by Siemens, each with a capacity of 6 MW, totalling 402 MW of installed generation capacity. The annual energy production is estimated to be 1.7 TWh. This is enough energy to power up to 410,000 UK homes.

Dudgeon is being developed by the Norwegian oil & gas company Statoil (35%), Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company Masdar (35%), and Norway’s state-owned electricity company Statkraft (30%). It is the first UK offshore wind project to obtain financing under the UK government’s ‘Contract for Difference’ (CfD). Statkraft and Statoil are also participating in the financing through sponsor co-lending. Statkraft will finance its 30% share in the project, while Statoil will finance a share of 17.5%.