From: Mercom India
Madrid-based energy and petrochemical company Repsol has acquired renewable energy investment platform Asterion Energies for €560 million (~$595 million) along with contingent payments of up to €20 million (~$21 million).
Asterion Energies manages 7,700 MW of clean projects which are under construction in markets with high development potential, with Spain accounting for 84% of its portfolio while Italy and France make up 12% and 4% respectively.
With this acquisition, Repsol targets achieving 6 GW of installed renewable generation capacity in the next three years and 20 GW by 2030, under the company’s 2021-2025 Strategic Plan.
While Repsol currently has over 1.6 GW of installed renewable capacity in Spain, the U.S., Chile, and Portugal, the acquisition will fuel its presence in the European markets while strengthening its international expansion in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) markets.
Repsol’s prominent operational assets in Spain include the 335 MW Delta wind farm in the northern region of Aragon; the 264 MW Valdesolar solar plant near Badajoz in western Spain; and the 126.6 MW Kappa photovoltaic solar complex in Ciudad Real in central Spain.
In June, the company approved the sale of 25% of its stake in the renewable business to a consortium comprising the French insurance company Credit Agricole Assurances and Switzerland-based Energy Infrastructure Partner for €905 million (~$949 million).
Repsol entered the U.S. renewable market last May by purchasing a 40% stake in Hecate Energy, a developer, owner, and operator of renewable power projects and storage solutions in North America. Currently, Repsol operates Jicarilla 2 which has a total installed capacity of 62.5 MW and is situated in New Mexico.
The company is now planning to develop Jicarilla 1, another solar project with an installed capacity of 62.5 MW and 20 MW of battery storage in New Mexico. It is also building a 637 MW PV solar project in Texas.
Repsol’s CEO Josu Jon Imaz said, “We are realizing our ambition to be leaders in the energy transition by taking firm steps such as this asset acquisition to meet our goals of growth, diversification, and focus on multi-energy. The projects and human talent that we are incorporating with this transaction perfectly complement our strategy.”
CEO of Asterion Industrial Jesus Olmos said, “We are proud to have created this European platform from scratch and to have achieved exponential growth over the last three years. We are convinced that Repsol is the ideal partner to continue this growth story and so contribute to the energy transition.”
