Gaelectric has agreed to sell 230MW of wind energy assets on the island of Ireland to CGNEE Holdings, the renewable energy investment arm of China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN).
The sale includes 10 operating wind farms totalling 184MW, and four that will be operational by mid-2017. Seven wind farms are located in Northern Ireland and seven in the Republic of Ireland. Gaelectric will continue to provide asset management and power-offtake services to CGNEE for the 14 wind farms post their sale.
Wei Lu, chief executive of CGN Europe Energy, said: “This will be CGNEE’s first acquisition in the energy sector in Ireland. CGN Group is focused on becoming a global leader in clean energy. ”
Barry Gavin, chief executive of Gaelectric Holdings, said: “This agreement allows us to support the Group’s balance sheet, paying down debt and creating the foundations for our other operational and development interests in the renewable energy sector, including a near term development pipeline across wind, solar, biomass and energy storage, including our 330MW CAES storage project in Northern Ireland.

“Our contract with CGNEE for trading and asset management will form the basis of a continuing relationship with a very significant new player in the Irish, European and international energy market.”
Advising Gaelectric Holdings plc on the transaction were Rothschild, KPMG and McCann Fitzgerald. Advising CGN Europe Energy SAS were Evercore, Eversheds, PwC and K2 Management.