National Grid sells US green unit to Brookfield amid Trump turmoil
National Grid says sale part of strategy to focus on network operations and 'streamline' business, with deal also completed as US President takes hammer to 'green new scam' policies of his predecessor
National Grid has sold its US onshore renewables business to Canadian multinational Brookfield Asset Management for $1.7bn amid huge uncertainty over the future of wind and solar in the US under President Donald Trump.
UK-headquartered National Grid announced the deal today, saying it is an “important step” in delivering on its strategy to focus on networks and “streamline” the business.
National Grid is the grid operator in Britain and also operates grid in the US in New York State and Massachusetts.
Subject to certain consents and regulatory approvals, National Grid it expects that the transaction will complete in the first half of the financial year ending 31 March 2026.
National Grid Renewables develops, owns and operates solar, onshore wind and battery storage assets in the US, with 1.8GW in operation and 1.3GW under construction.
Brookfield, through its green unit Brookfield Renewable Partners, is one of the world’s largest investors in the renewables sector, reporting 34GW of generating capacity.
It operators across five continents, with a wide portfolio of wind, solar, hydro and energy storage technologies.
Tancrede Fulop, senior equity analyst at Morningstar, said Brookfield's latest swoop for National Grid's US onshore renewables business "reflects the current market dynamics," where developers exposed to the US market like EDPR have "faced excessive sell-offs."
"The transaction price is in line with the $1.8bn that we expected National Grid to fetch for these assets comprising 1.8GW of operating capacity. It implies an enterprise value/MW of $1m."
EDPR shares have tumbled by nearly 30% since the election of Trump, and Fulop said he belives the sector is "undervalued." Existing IRA tax credits "cannot be repealed before their expiration," he said, while pulling forward the expiration of the IRA tax credits for new projects will require approval from Congress, which "might prove challenging" since most renewables projects are installed in Republican states.
(Copyright)