EDP completes the sale of 6 hydropower plants (1.7 GW) in Portugal

EDP has completed the sale of 6 large hydropower plants totalling 1.7 GW in the Douro river basin in Portugal to a consortium of Engie (40%), Crédit Agricole Assurances (35%) and Mirova – Natixis Group (25%) for €2.2bn. EDP will divest three run-of-river power plants with a combined capacity of 1.2 GW, namely 369 MW Miranda, 440 MW Picote and 431 MW Bemposta, and three pumped-storage power plants with a combined capacity of 0.5 GW, namely 261 MW Foz Tua, 189 MW Baixo Sabor and 36 MW Feiticeiro. EDP has been investing massively in the construction and repowering of hydropower plants in Portugal over the last 12 years, adding 2.6 GW of hydropower capacity. Some of the power plants included in the transaction have been expanded recently (Picote and Bemposta in 2011, Miranda in 2014), while some have been commissioned since 2016 (Baixo Sabor in 2016, Foz Tua in 2017).

In addition, EDP's renewable subsidiary EDRP has completed the acquisition of the renewable business of the Spanish power company Viesgo, including 511 MW of renewable installed capacity in Spain (84%) and Portugal (16%). In July 2020, EDP reached an agreement with Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) to acquire MIRA's entire stake in Viesgo for €2bn including debt (net equity investment of €900m). Viesgo is active in power generation (around 380 MW of wind capacity and 25 MW of hydropower capacity in Spain, plus two coal-fired power plants (912 MW) that will be closed before 2021 but that offer a potential network access of nearly 1 GW) and in power distribution (power grid of 31,300 km and almost 700,000 delivery points in the regions of Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria, and Castilla y León). EDP and MIRA have agreed to set up a partnership for the electricity distribution businesses of Viesgo, Begasa and E-Redes, in which MIRA will take a 24.9% stake for €700m including debt and equity. This distribution alliance will operate 50,000 km of networks and distribute power to 1.3 million supply points. The transaction was cleared by the European Commission, under the EU merger regulations, in October 2020.