Simply Blue Group announces new investor to help accelerate its international expansion
Monday 9 August, 2021: Simply Blue Group (SBG), Ireland’s leading Blue Economy project developer, has announced that Octopus Renewables has invested €15m in SBG to help accelerate its expansion in Ireland, the UK and internationally. The transaction means that Octopus Renewables is now a 24% shareholder in SBG.
SBG is a developer of sustainable marine projects focused on floating offshore wind and is headquartered in Cork. It has developed a pipeline of over 9GW of floating offshore wind projects to-date, primarily in Ireland and the UK. SBG is developing the Emerald Floating Wind Project in the Celtic Sea off Kinsale with Shell, and the Blue Gem Wind portfolio of floating wind projects in the Welsh waters of the Celtic sea with TotalEnergies.
Octopus Renewables, which has made the investment through Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust plc (ORIT), as well as other funds managed by Octopus, is a specialist clean energy investor focused on accelerating the transition to a future powered by renewable energy. It has a diverse portfolio of assets with a capacity of over 2.8GW, making it the largest commercial solar investor in Europe and a leading investor in onshore wind.
SBG were advised in the transaction by Green Giraffe (Corporate Finance) and Field Fisher (Legals).
Sam Roch-Perks, Chief Executive of Simply Blue Group said “We are delighted to collaborate with Octopus Renewables and share their vision of a future powered by renewable energy. The investment by Octopus recognises SBG as a leading blue economy developer. Significantly this investment will support and accelerate SBG’s international expansion outside of the UK and Ireland, utilizing the unique experience and skills gained from our pioneering developments in both the UK and Ireland. Octopus is an established and significant player in renewables and this investment gives them an exciting entry into the world of floating offshore wind.”
Chris Gaydon, Investment Director at Octopus Renewables said “We are delighted to be working with Simply Blue, a leading marine project developer with a highly experienced and best-in-class management team. Floating offshore wind is a particularly exciting renewable energy sector which is expected to undergo rapid growth over the years to come and is a key part of government decarbonisation plans in a number of European countries. We believe Simply Blue is very well positioned to capture this growth.”
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