Following 12 years of development, Cape Wind's developers now believe they'll be able to begin construction this year.
PensionDanmark's investment comes via the fund Copenhagen Infrastructure I, which is managed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners.
Once built out, Cape Wind is expected to supply up to 500,000 households with power.
"We are delighted to participate in the Cape Wind project," said Torben Möger Pedersen, PensionDanmark's CEO. "Investing in energy infrastructure is not new to us. We have made equity investments in two offshore wind farms in Denmark and three onshore wind farms in the USA and provided debt financing for onshore wind parks in Sweden and Belgium. At a time when bond yields are very low, this is expected to be an attractive investment opportunity for us."
With up to 130 Siemens turbines of 3.6 MW each, Cape Wind could become one of the world's large offshore wind farms. The first season of the project, in which the investment is expected, covers 101 of the turbines. The commitment is conditional upon a final investment decision to be made by the end of the year.
"The Cape Wind project has some attractive project characteristics in terms of the physical conditions of the site and an experienced supplier base, and we expect the final project details to be in place later this year," said Christian Skakkebæk, who is a partner in Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP).
"Power purchase agreements have been secured covering the production of the first phase for the first 15 years and the plans include the use of proven and operationally stable technology," Skakkebæk added.
Jim Gordon, founder and owner of the Boston-based energy company Energy Management Inc., the firm behind the Cape Wind project, welcomed the Danish investment.
"This important investment is a milestone in the Cape Wind project. We are pleased to welcome PensionDenmark and CIP into the project as experienced investors in offshore wind," he said.
For additional information:
