North Star raises £140m investment to support “ambitious” offshore wind growth

North Star has secured a £140m financing package to support the next phase of its “ambitious” offshore wind growth plan as it looks to broaden its position as the UK’s leading service operations vessel (SOV) operator and seize new opportunities in Europe.

The investment includes a £50m commitment from the Scottish National Investment Bank, as well as IFM Investors, Edmond de Rothschild’s BRIDGE, and RBC Capital Markets.

The Bank’s investment aligns with its mission to support Scotland’s transition to net zero, allowing the continued expansion of offshore wind projects in the North Sea by addressing recognised demand for SOVs and commissioning service operations vessels (CSOVs).

North Star, which is owned by Partners Group, a leading global private markets firm acting on behalf of its clients, has bases in Aberdeen, Lowestoft and Newcastle, and has been operating in the North Sea for 135 years.

Its 1,300-strong workforce currently manages and operates 42 offshore support vessels providing “critical” safety services to over 50 UK Continental Shelf installations 24 hours a day, all year round.

The firm entered the offshore wind market last year after winning all four long-term charter SOV awards for the “highly competitive” Dogger Bank Wind Farm. These four vessels will be delivered from 2023, financed by a £127m project facility secured from Allianz Global Investors last year.

SOVs provide accommodation for wind technicians and access to equipment while working in the field. North Star’s state-of-the-art ships utilise hybrid-power, dynamic positioning (DP), AI and machine learning technologies.

North Star chief strategy officer Fraser Dobbie, commented: “We have a 40-year track record of reliable marine operations, 15 years of DP experience operating close to clients’ assets, and proven expertise in overseeing numerous concurrent shipbuilding projects.

“Raising this level of corporate funding from The Bank and other investors, as well as the ongoing backing of Partners Group, provides us with the means to continue to add to our growing vessel fleet and supports our ambition to be a leading player in the European SOV market.

“The £140m secured today secures the capital required for us to continue our new building programme in the year ahead, whilst providing us with the flexibility to continue to expand these facilities to meet our strategy of 40 new SOVs by 2040.”

By Matthew Neville – Correspondent, Bdaily

• Add me on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep up to date
• And follow Bdaily on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
• Submit press releases to editor@bdaily.co.uk for consideration.

Looking to promote your product/service to SME businesses in your region? Find out how Bdaily can help →