Small Hydro

Downing completes acquisition of small hydropower plant in Norway

Downing completes acquisition of small hydropower plant in Norway

Investment manager Downing LLP has completed the acquisition of Norwegian small hydropower plant Lauvstad Kraftverk AS for £3 million (US$3.6 million).

The renewable energy and infrastructure arm of Downing Estate Planning Service has acquired 100% of Lauvstad Kraftverk from Fossberg Kraft AS, which developed the 6 GWh hydropower plant in the Drangedal region of southern Norway.

Downing had already paid 20% of the purchase price to the project’s developer to part fund construction, and the balance was paid at completion.

The latest deal builds on a series of investments made by Downing in the Nordic region, which earlier this year also included its first investment in Finland — in addition to a number of hydropower assets in Norway through its partnership with Fossberg Kraft.

In January 2021, Hydro Review reported that Downing LLP exchanged contracts to acquire a portfolio of five operational hydropower plants in South Norway from Fossberg Kraft/Fossberg Kraft Produksjon AS. The portfolio comprises five hydropower plants near the city of Bergen with total average annual production of 21.8 GWh.

“The Lauvstad hydropower plant acquisition has represented an excellent opportunity to further expand our investment allocations in hydropower and the Nordic region,” said Tom Williams, head of Energy & Infrastructure at Downing. “Financing newbuilt hydro in the Nordic region is an important part of our strategy as we look to continuously diversify our portfolio by both geography and technology. By acquiring a hydropower plant that has recently been constructed, we have also diversified our investment portfolio further by project phase. We look forward to continuing our excellent relationship with Fossberg Kraft AS to further expand our Norwegian hydropower portfolio.”

Downing’s Energy and Infrastructure team has made more than 175 investments and has about £785 million ($953.9 million) of assets under management, consisting of solar, wind, hydroelectric and battery storage technology.