Norway’s Equinor (OSE:EQNR) has acquired a 9.8% stake in Danish renewables group Ørsted (XCSE: ORSTED)
With 41,197,344 shares, Equinor is now the second largest shareholder in Ørsted, after the Danish State, which holds a controlling stake in the company.
Equinor stated that it is supportive of Ørsted’s strategy and management and is not seeking board representation.
Ørsted has a net renewable generation capacity of around 10.4 GW, and a gross portfolio of offshore wind projects in execution of around 7 GW. The company’s ambition is to achieve a gross installed renewable capacity of around 35 to 38 GW by 2030.
The company has multiple renewables projects operating in the UK, and has two major offshore wind farms in development, the 2.9GW Hornsea 3 and 2.6GW Hornsea 4.
It is also part of a joint venture with plans to develop the 1GW Stromar floating wind farm off Caithness as part of ScotWind.
CEO of Equinor Anders Opedal said: “Equinor has a long-term perspective and will be a supportive owner in Ørsted. This is a counter-cyclical investment in a leading developer, and a premium portfolio of operating offshore wind assets.
“The exposure to producing assets complements Equinor’s operated offshore wind portfolio of large projects under development.”
He added: “This investment is in line with Equinor’s strategy of value driven growth in renewables. The offshore wind industry is currently facing a set of challenges, but we remain confident in the long-term outlook for the sector, and the crucial role offshore wind will play in the energy transition.”
Subject to obtaining regulatory approvals under applicable foreign direct investment regulations, Equinor intends to increase its ownership to 10%. There are currently no plans to further increase the stake.
Ørsted has faced financial headwinds in recent years after cancelling two major projects in the US last year. The company recently announced that it booked an impairment of more than $500 million due to an offshore wind farm in the US and a cancelled green hydrogen plant in Sweden.
The company has been working on a plan to turnaround its fortunes, with its recent results saying it is on track to make a full-year profit of around 23 billion kroner ($3.4bn).
