Mitsubishi Corporation Named Preferred Bidder for Offshore Transmission Asset in the UK

Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), through its wholly-owned subsidiary Diamond Transmission Corporation (DTC), has been selected as the preferred bidder for a new, offshore electricity transmission link in the UK.  This marks the sixth electricity transmission project for MC in the UK.  The new offshore electricity transmission asset connects the Race Bank Offshore Windfarm (generation capacity of 573MW), situated approximately 27 km off the country’s eastern coast, with the Walpole substation which is owned by National Grid.  The transmission line is composed of subsea cable, land cable, and offshore and onshore substations, and is valued at GBP 500.9 million, making it one of the largest among operational offshore transmission link assets in the UK.

 

MC will execute this electricity transmission business for a 20-year period starting around March 2019, following successful acquisition of the asset and the granting of an Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) license by the UK’s Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem).

 

With the acquisition of the Race Bank Offshore Windfarm transmission link, DTC will be operating six out of 18 offshore transmission assets in the UK.  Combined with four others held in Germany, the number of power transmission assets held by DTC in Europe will add up to ten, with a gross transmission length of approximately 960 km and an electricity transmission capacity of around 5 GW.

 

DTC holds a highly qualified in-house professional technical and accounting team, in addition to the support of professionals dispatched from MC.  Ever since entering the offshore power transmission business in 2011, MC has actively worked on the acquisition and management of assets in Europe. Through DTC, MC seeks to further expand its investments in offshore transmission assets in Europe.

 

A European Commission roadmap suggests that by 2050, the EU will aim to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 80% of levels in 1990.  In line with that target, the EU expects to generate some 50 GW of offshore wind power capacity by 2030.  The expansion of renewable energy, which depends on surrounding environmental conditions for power generation, creates increasing importance for stably operated power transmission systems.  MC sees its participation in offshore transmission as an opportunity to realize MC’s vision of simultaneously generating economic, societal and environmental value through its businesses.

＜MC’s Offshore Transmission Assets＞

＜Location of MC’s Offshore Transmission Assets＞

＜Reference Information＞

1. About Mitsubishi Corporation：

(1) Head Office       : 3-1, Marunouchi 2-Chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan

(2) Establised          : 1954

(3) Business             : MC is a global integrated business enterprise that develops and operates business across virtually every industry including industrial finance, energy, metals, machinery, chemicals, foods, and environmental business.

(4) Representative   : Takehiko Kakiuchi, President and Chief Executive Officer

 

2. About Diamond Transmission Corporation Limited：

(1) Head Office       : Mid City Place, 71 High Holborn, London, WC1V 6BA, United Kingdom

(2) Established        : 2013

(3) Business             : Transmission of electricity in Europe.

(4) Representative   : Yasushi Umemura, CEO & Managing Director