Pinsent Masons advises on £1.175bn acquisition and financing of offshore transmission assets

This regulated divestment of transmission assets, including the onshore substation, export cables, three offshore substations and an offshore reactive compensation station, took place in accordance with tender round 6 of Ofgem's offshore transmission owner (OFTO) regime. The purchase was part-financed by a debt package from a syndicate of international lenders.

DTP Hornsea One is a partnership between Diamond Transmission Corporation Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corporation) and Chubu Electric Power Company Netherlands B.V. (a wholly owned subsidiary of Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc.).

Hornsea 1 is joint-venture between Ørsted (50%) and Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) (50%).

The multidisciplinary Pinsent Masons team was led by Energy Projects Legal Director, David Trethowan and included Murdo Maclean, Stephen Tobin, Graham Young, Beren Shorman, Bayan Jafari-Eshaiker, Andrea McLellan, George Bamber, Ruth Taylor, Philippa Godwin and Imogen Dewar.

Commenting on the deal, David Trethowan said: "As the largest divestment of transmission assets through the OFTO regime to date, both in terms of size and value, this is an extremely significant transaction that highlights the markets continued investment and ensures the UK continues to lead the way in offshore wind technology. This transaction signals another chapter in our long standing relationship with the Diamond Transmission consortium which marks its fifth offshore transmission acquisition since 2018."