Masdar, a UAE-based company, buys Brookfield Saeta in a $1.4 billion deal

The United Arab Emirates renewable energy company Masdar announced on Tuesday that it had reached an agreement with Canada's Brookfields to purchase green energy firm Saeta Yield in a $1.4 billion deal.

Masdar will acquire 745 megawatts in Spain and Portugal (mostly wind assets) and 1.6 gigawatts in projects in development. This is one of the biggest deals of this kind in the Iberian Region.

It is Masdar’s second major green energy deal to be signed in Spain in the last few months, which is one of Europe’s biggest wind and solar markets. This deal follows Masdar's agreement to purchase a minority stake of 48 solar plants owned by Endesa, a unit within Italy's Enel, for 817 millions euros.

Masdar's CFO said that higher interest rates had led to a "normalisation of asset prices" after the deal with Endesa. He added that the company is looking for more opportunities in this region.

The agreement includes 538MW of wind power assets in Spain, 144MW in Portugal and the remainder in Spain. Brookfield will continue to control some solar thermal plants that Saeta controls.

The deal should be closed by the end of this year.

Masdar CEO Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi stated that Saeta was the perfect complement to Masdar’s portfolio in Europe. This is especially true after the recent partnership between Endesa and Masdar.

The abundant wind and solar resources in Spain and Portugal have attracted both domestic and international firms keen to capitalize on the growing demand for renewable energies.

Masdar, which is controlled by the UAE's national oil company ADNOC, and Mubadala Investment, a sovereign wealth fund, aims to increase its renewable energy capacity to 100 GW by 2030.

Brookfield purchased and delisted Saeta in 2018 for 1 Billion Euros. Reporting by Pietro Lombardi, Andres Gonzalez and Lincoln Feast.

(source: Reuters)