HICL Infrastructure invests in wind farm and Belfast college project

HICL Infrastructure Company announce the completion of two investments on Friday - one in Diamond Transmission Partners BBE, and another in its existing joint venture company with Kajima Partnerships.

The FTSE 250 firm said Diamond Transmission Partners, in which it held a 50% interest, would acquire the transmission assets associated with the Burbo Bank Extension Windfarm located in Liverpool Bay on Friday.

It said the transaction was part of Tender Round 4 of Ofgem's Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) programme.

HICL announced its status as preferred bidder for the OFTO in July last year, alongside its partner, Diamond Transmission Corporation - a subsidiary of the Mitsubishi Corporation.

“Under the OFTO regime, Diamond Transmission Partners takes ownership of the operational transmission asset and receives contractual, availability-based revenues over a 20-year period,” the HICL board said in its statement.

“Diamond Transmission Partners does not have exposure to construction risk, electricity production or power price risk.

“Renewable Energy Systems (RES) will provide certain operations and maintenance services for DTP under a long-term subcontract.”

The second investment was in HICL's existing joint venture company with Kajima Partnerships, in which it held a 75% interest, which acquired the Belfast Metropolitan College private finance initiative project from the Titanic Property Development Group.

HICL said the project was a 27-year public-private partnership project that involved the design, construction, financing, maintenance and operation of a further and higher education college and associated basement car park.

The project was signed in April 2009 and had been fully operational since August 2011.

Soft and hard facilities management services were undertaken by Amey Community under a subcontract for the remaining life of the concession.

“The HICL Group's total investment in the two acquisitions was £16.3m, which was funded from HICL's cash resources,” the board said.

“The investments formed part of HICL's planned funding commitments and therefore were included within the forecast drawings on the revolving credit facility, as announced in February 2018, of approximately £130m at 31 March.”