North Star secures £425 million of debt investment

North Star has secured debt investment of up to £425m to accelerate its ambition to become the leading player in Europe’s offshore wind sector and add 40 hybrid service operation vessels (SOVs) to its fleet by 2040.

The financial package of £225m includes term facilities from existing lender IFM Investors and working capital resources from banks including ABN AMRO (sustainability co-ordinator), AIB, NAB, Royal Bank of Scotland and RBC (sustainability structuring advisor).

The facilities also have accordion capacity allowing a further £200m in funding, enabling the firm the flexibility to upsize as required. RBC Capital Markets performed the lead advisory role in support of the transaction.

Now owned by Partners Group, North Star has bases in Aberdeen, Lowestoft, Newcastle and Hamburg, operating 41 multi-purpose ships in the North Sea. It also has three of four new build SOVs in operation at the Dogger Bank Wind Farm, with the final asset on schedule for early delivery next year.

A further four new builds are underway – an SOV for EnBW’s wind farm in Germany, another for Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy at the East Anglia THREE project, and its first two larger Commissioning SOVs to further support its offshore wind clients.

North Star’s chief financial officer Fraser Dobbie commented: “This £425m strategic investment highlights the attraction of our robust business model and ESG transition journey as we push to become the leading player in Europe’s SOV sector.

“The infusion of capital from a combination of institutional and bank investors secures access to the capital required to support our continued growth, and provides validation from the lender market of the excellent progress we have made on our strategic journey to build our business for sustainable, long-term success in the offshore wind market.

“For potential clients, this committed debt package provides certainty on our ability to deliver vessels as outlined in our tender bids, financially de-risking the process completely.”

North Star has been operating for 137 years and employs a workforce which includes 1,400 onshore personnel and seafaring crew.

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