Latest news with #TrondWestlie
Irish Examiner
4 days ago
- Business
- Irish Examiner
S&P downgrades Orsted credit rating
Orsted was downgraded to the lowest tier of investment grade by S&P Global Ratings on increasing risks to its US offshore wind business as the Trump Administration moves to halt the sector's development. It's just the latest bit of bad news for the company after the announcement of a rights issues on Monday sent shares plunging the most ever this week. In Ireland, Orsted has almost 30 wind farms in operation or development, along with two solar farms. In 2023 it entered a 50/50 partnership with the ESB to develop offshore wind farms. However, over the past few years, the Danish utility has been forced to write off billions of dollars amid cancellations and delays to projects on both sides of the Atlantic because of soaring costs and volatile policies. Orsted's long-term issuer credit rating was dropped one notch to BBB-, just one step above junk, S&P said in a statement on Thursday. It cited business challenges including the Danish company's inability to carry out project refinancing and divest 50% of its US-based Sunrise wind project. The downgrade 'can only be characterised as a clearly negative surprise,' Danske Bank Chief Credit Analyst Jakob Magnussen wrote in a note. 'We had expected that S&P would stay at 'BBB' and possibly even assign a positive outlook.' 'These expected updates do not impact our business plan,' said Trond Westlie, Orsted's chief financial officer. 'We're comfortable with our credit metrics and believe they are in a good place commensurate with solid investment grade rating.' All the firm's current offshore wind projects, totaling 8.1 gigawatts, are progressing according to plan, Westlie said in an emailed comment. S&P also noted that it had revised its view of the firm's management and governance as 'moderately negative' because of the credit impact of its 'high-risk strategy that, to some extent, current management inherited.' Orsted said earlier this week that it planned to raise as much as 60 billion Danish kroner ($9.4bn (€8.1bn)) in a stock sale to steady its finances after US President Donald Trump's policies to limit offshore wind stifled the company's ability to sell project stakes. Since coming into office, Trump has halted permitting for new offshore wind developments, withdrawn millions of acres of ocean for development, and hastened the end of renewable energy tax incentives.
Mint
11-08-2025
- Business
- Mint
Orsted Fails to Convince Investors It's Through The Worst
(Bloomberg) -- Management of Orsted A/S failed to convince analysts and investors that the company is at a turning point after losing nearly one third of its value from announcing it would sell shares. The offshore wind farm developer plunged the most on record as investors digested a planned rights issue that's effectively a handout by the Danish government. The state plans to buy just above half of the securities. The offshore wind pioneer was briefly more valuable than British oil major BP Plc at the height of the green investing boom just a few years ago. After a series of writedowns, cancellations of three major projects, the replacement of its top executives and two turnaround plans, the company announced the biggest rights issue for a European energy company in more than 15 years. It aims to raise 60 billion Danish kroner ($9.3 billion). It's the latest example in a years-long effort by the company to convince investors that it has its finances under control after soaring costs and rising interest rates upended its business model. It first announced impairments on its US projects in 2023, the start of a series of bad news that it assured investors each time would be contained. On top of that, there's the impact of US President Donald Trump and his dislike for wind turbines that's creating negative sentiment. So far, investors appear unconvinced that this is a buying opportunity. While the Danish government has agreed to purchase shares, it's unclear what appetite other existing investors will have. And there's not yet a fixed price for the underwritten shares, the company's Chief Financial Officer Trond Westlie said Monday. 'The analyst call did little to provide incremental comfort around the risk-reward skew,'Ahmed Farman, analyst at Jefferies International Ltd., said in a note. 'We see execution risks on aspects of the new plan, as well as limited medium-term growth prospects.' Shares in the company fell as much as 32% on Monday, revealing skepticism that the capital raise will be enough to fix the company for good and return it to a pathway of predictability, profitability and growth. Orsted said on Monday that financing costs for one site - Sunrise Wind, off the coast of New York's Montauk Point - had climbed significantly due to uncertainty for the sector created by Trump. The company halted the process for a partial sale on Monday saying that full ownership of the project was one of the key reasons it needs capital. The company typically funds growth by selling stakes in wind farms that are close to completion. The impact of canceling the stake sale in Sunrise was estimated at 40 billion Danish kroner, a sum that appears high, according to Deepa Venkateswaran, analyst at Bernstein. This leaves open the possibility that the figure could be masking impacts on other projects like a wind farm sale in the UK or further political risk in the US, Venkateswaran said in a note. 'We therefore wonder if there are other risks that the company is being less open about,' she said. Orsted management cited the move by the Trump administration to halt an already-permitted offshore wind farm that was being developed by Norway's Equinor ASA, as a tipping point. It was an unprecedented move that underscored the risks of investing in offshore wind in the US while President Trump is in office. While the decision was ultimately reversed, it derailed plans Orsted was carrying out to finance and sell a stake in its Sunrise Wind farm. Equinor is the second-largest shareholder in Orsted and the value of its stake has already dropped by over $1 billion since the deal was announced last year. 'The perceived risks of the US offshore wind market among investors and banks increased significantly,' Orsted's Chief Executive Officer Rasmus Errboe said on a call with analysts. 'Investors involved in the equity process substantially increased their required risk protections and return requirements and the banks involved on project financing ultimately were not able to continue the process under current market conditions without material risk protections.' Ultimately the share sale will be a test of Orsted's continued bet on offshore wind. The company built its first wind farm at sea off the coast of Denmark more than 30 years ago and has been instrumental in the sector's growth from niche to one of Europe's most important sources of new renewable power generation. 'Despite the headwinds that offshore wind has an industry has faced in recent years, we continue to see a very strong outlook for the technology, particularly in Europe where electricity demand is projected to more than double by 2050,' Errboe said. 'We remain 100% committed to the continued construction of our program.' Many of Orsted's biggest competitors in offshore wind have refocused on other parts of their businesses. Iberdrola SA and SSE Plc are ramping up spending on electric grids. Meanwhile oil majors Shell Plc and BP Plc have pulled back from the sector to focus on the oil and gas businesses that drive their profits. But Orsted doesn't have much else besides offshore wind. It announced plans to sell its European onshore wind business Monday and while it also has some biomass plants in Denmark and an onshore renewables business in the US, those are insignificant compared to offshore wind, which makes up the vast majority of its profit and investments. And it's not clear how steady the outlook for offshore wind will remain in Europe. Rising costs have led to a series of failed auctions, most recently in Germany. The response from industry has been to urge governments to provide subsidies that guarantee wind farm owners fixed prices for power. And with high energy prices still stinging Europe's economy, government appetite to pay up may shrink. --With assistance from Eamon Akil Farhat. More stories like this are available on
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ørsted finalises $3bn for 632MW Greater Changhua 2 wind farm
Ørsted has closed a finance package of T$90bn ($3.08bn) to support the development of the Greater Changhua 2 offshore wind farm in Taiwan. The deal comprises contributions from 25 banks and five export credit agencies: Export Finance Norway (Eksfin), EIFO Denmark, KEXIM South Korea, T-EXIM Taiwan and UK Export Finance (UKEF). The financial close is part of Ørsted's broader strategy, which includes an equity divestment programme to be completed when the project becomes operational. The Greater Changhua 2 wind farm is between 50 and 60km offshore Taiwan's Changhua County. With a capacity of 632MW, it includes the operational Greater Changhua 2a and the under-construction Greater Changhua 2b, with full commissioning expected by late 2025. Ørsted Group chief financial officer Trond Westlie stated: 'We've received very strong support from both international and local banks and export credit agencies for the project financing of Greater Changhua 2. This shows that there is a healthy appetite for premium assets with robust contractual structures, and it's a clear sign that we're working diligently to deliver on our divestment and partnerships programme. 'While funding of Ørsted's activities primarily has been undertaken at the group level, we have extensive experience in structuring financing packages on behalf of incoming partners. This transaction is another important step forward for the strategic priorities we've set for ourselves.' The project is also expected to support UK-based companies such as Cadeler, CRP Subsea, Ordtek and Cathie to supply services and components. Minister for Exports Gareth Thomas said: 'This shows how government is boosting exports in our key growth sectors and supporting jobs across the country as part of our Plan for Change. 'This investment will enable British innovation in renewable technology to scale up Taiwan's clean energy transition and follows our modern industrial strategy, which provides up to £13bn of direct lending for UKEF to help businesses to export.' In May 2025, Ørsted finalised the sale of a 24.5% stake in the West of Duddon Sands offshore wind farm, 14km from the west coast of England, to Schroders Greencoat. "Ørsted finalises $3bn for 632MW Greater Changhua 2 wind farm" was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ørsted divests 24.5% of West of Duddon Sands wind farm to Schroders Greencoat
Ørsted has completed the sale of a 24.5% stake in the West of Duddon Sands offshore wind farm, 14km from the west coast of England, to funds managed by Schroders Greencoat. The transaction, valued at £456.1m ($606.5m) on a debt-free basis, was finalised on 30 April 2025. West of Duddon Sands has been operational since 2014 and has a capacity of 389MW. The divestment aligns with Ørsted's ongoing partnership and divestment programme, aimed at strengthening the company's capital structure, diversifying risk and recycling capital for future growth. Schroders Greencoat, a leading investor in renewable infrastructure assets, manages more than 7GW of net generating capacity and £9.6bn in assets. Ørsted group CEO Trond Westlie stated: 'Farm-downs and partnerships are an integral part of Ørsted's business model, and we're pleased to expand our partnership with Schroders Greencoat, who has a proven track record in managing renewable energy infrastructure assets and is a highly valued partner to Ørsted. 'With today's announcement, we continue to deliver on our farm-down programme with a transaction that meets our strategic objectives for partnerships and divestments in terms of value creation, risk diversification and capital recycling.' The firm's existing partnership with Ørsted extends to four other offshore wind farms: Walney, Burbo Bank Extension, Hornsea 1 and Borkum Riffgrund 1. Ørsted will maintain a 25.5% interest in the wind farm and continue to operate it under the current operations and maintenance agreement. The move is part of Ørsted's larger strategy to expand its offshore wind capacity through a self-funded construction programme of more than 8GW. It has engaged the services of energy and marine consultancy ABL for marine warranty surveying (MWS) related to the offshore transportation and installation of wind turbines and cables at the Greater Changhua 2b and 4 offshore wind farms in Taiwan. ABL's involvement includes the review, survey and approval of all operations concerning the transportation and installation of wind turbines and subsea cables. This follows ABL's previous MWS work on the 900MW Greater Changhua 1 and 2a offshore wind farms, which were both completed in 2022. "Ørsted divests 24.5% of West of Duddon Sands wind farm to Schroders Greencoat" was originally created and published by Power Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
01-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Orsted sells stake in UK offshore wind farm for $606 million
COPENHAGEN, May 1 (Reuters) - Orsted ( opens new tab has sold a 24.5% stake in a UK offshore wind farm for around 456 million pounds ($606 million) to funds managed by Schroders Greencoat, it said on Thursday. The world's biggest offshore wind power developer will retain a 25.5% stake and remain the operator of the West of Duddon Sands project located off the UK west coast, which has a capacity of 389 megawatts, it said. Make sense of the latest ESG trends affecting companies and governments with the Reuters Sustainable Switch newsletter. Sign up here. Orsted's Chief Financial Officer Trond Westlie said in a statement the deal met the company's strategic objectives "in terms of value creation, risk diversification, and capital recycling". Battling to restore investor confidence, Orsted in February trimmed its investment and capacity targets and paused dividend payouts as part of a major review. ($1 = 0.7525 pounds)
