Apollo Invests $6.5 Bn in Ørsted’s Hornsea 3 Offshore Wind Project

Apollo-managed funds have agreed to invest $6.5 billion in a 50% stake in Ørsted’s Hornsea 3. The company made a $6.5 billion investment includes the acquisition price for a 50% interest in the joint venture holding Hornsea 3, one of the largest offshore wind projects. This latest investment would fund 50% of the project’s remaining construction costs.

Ørsted chose to partner with Apollo in part for its ability to deliver a long-term, comprehensive equity and financing solution for the large-scale infrastructure project. 

The company’s latest announcement comes a few months after Orsted decided to discontinue the Hornsea 4 project in the United Kingdom (UK). The earlier cancellation was done after the Contract for Difference (CfD) award in allocation round 6 (AR6) in September 2024. The 2,400 MW Hornsea 4 project saw several adverse developments relating to the continued increase of supply chain costs, higher interest rates, and an increase in the risk to construct and operate Hornsea 4 on the planned timeline for a project of this scale.

About The Project

Hornsea 3 is Ørsted’s third gigawatt-scale project in the North Sea’s Hornsea zone, and upon completion, it will have a capacity of 2.9GW. As part of the agreement, Ørsted will continue to construct the wind farm under a full-scope EPC contract and will provide long-term operations and maintenance services as well as route-to-market for power generation.

The Hornsea 3 transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and anticipated to close before year-end 2025. The Apollo Funds are expected to invest approximately $3.25 billion upon close, with the remaining $3.25 billion to be funded as the project reaches certain construction and development milestones in the coming years.

The transaction’s senior financing is being led by Apollo-managed entities, and the bank facilities have been underwritten by BNP Paribas, ING Bank, Lloyds and RBC Capital Markets. Co-investors include La Caisse, formerly CDPQ, which has committed to the transaction across both equity and debt, and PSP Investments, which has committed to the transaction’s debt financing.