Aker Horizons Wants 75% Of Mainstream Renewable Energy

• Aker Horizons has acquired a 75% stake in Mainstream Renewable Power of Ireland
• The €900 million deal provides Mainstream enough capital to bring 5.5 GW assets to a financial close by 2023 and enter newer markets
• Aker will gain a platform to grow in the renewable energy space and position itself in a growing market for hybrid projects

Aker ASA, a Norway based industrial investment firm, has chosen Ireland based onshore/offshore wind and solar power company Mainstream Renewable Power as acquisition target. It will pick up a 75% stake in it. The transaction, if complete post regulatory approval, will bring to Aker a portfolio of about 1.4 GW of operational and under construction assets, 10 GW project development pipeline, as well as another 10 GW of identified project opportunities.

Executed through Aker's wholly owned subsidiary Aker Horizons AS, Mainstream is valued under the deal at €900 million ($1.09 billion). This will enable the Irish company to accelerate its global expansion as it plans to bring 5.5 GW of assets to a financial close by 2023 as part of the plan to target an initial public offering (IPO).

Mainstream's CEO Mary Quaney said the investment from Aker sets the company firmly on track to becoming one of the world's first pure-play renewable energy majors. For Aker the investment helps as it prepares for a private placement in the near future and a listing on Euronext Growth with a subsequent transfer of the listing to Oslo Børs within 12 months.

Aker Horizons CEO Kristian Røkke explained, "Through the acquisition of Mainstream, Aker Horizons will gain a platform to drive forward its renewable energy ambitions and position itself in a growing market for hybrid projects."

As part of the deal between the duo, Mainstream will retain its identity and will continue to be led by Quaney as the CEO and the company's founder Eddie O'Connor as the chairman. O'Connor will reinvest and retain a significant minority interest of 25% in the business.

"It means we can widen our scope for entry into new markets and further deepen and expand our leadership position in existing ones, such as in Chile where we will soon be supplying the equivalent of one in seven Chilean homes with power from our wind and solar facilities," explained O'Connor on the move.

The deal also brings to Aker a 50% holding in SuperNode, founded by O'Connor in 2018 as a technology company developing superconductor cables for better offshore wind production.