05 October 2009
DIF Infrastructure II acquires German wind farm from WKN Windkraft Nord AG
- Wehrhain wind farm in Brandenburg
Husum - WKN Windkraft Nord AG (‘WKN’) has sold the Wehrhain wind farm in Brandenburg (East Germany), with a total output of 16 megawatts, to DIF Infrastructure II B.V., a Dutch investment fund, managed by DIF. DIF Infrastructure II acquired 100% of the shares of the wind farm which has been developed by WKN, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the BGZ-Group. BGZ-Group will remain involved in the wind farm as the operational manager.
Construction of the eight Vestas V90 / 2.0 megawatt turbines, each with a hub height of 105 metres, is complete and they have been operational since the end of May 2009. Wehrhain is situated approximately 80 kilometres south of Berlin.
The wind farm, supplies some 8,000 households with environmentally friendly electricity. The special feature of the project is the infra-red installation at height of 45 metres on each tower. The reason for this is the location of the wind farm in the airspace of a military airport, where helicopters regularly carry out low-level flights.
The installation of the infra-red lights enables the helicopter pilots to pinpoint the location of the turbines during night flights. “With the night vision device, the pilot can see the turbines in good time,” said WKN Project Manager Björn Awiszus.
DIF
DIF is an independent dedicated fund management company offering investors access to portfolios of infrastructure assets. DIF launched its first fund, DIF PPP (Public Private Partnership) in 2005. This dedicated €150 million PPP fund has successfully invested in a number of Public Private Partnership projects in Europe and is now fully committed. DIF’s second fund, DIF Renewable Energy, with a size of €150 million was launched in 2007 and is also now fully committed. It has invested in onshore wind projects in the Netherlands, France and Germany and solar assets in Spain.
DIF Infrastructure II targets investments in European (EU 27) infrastructure and renewable projects with a moderate risk profile. First and second closing of DIF Infrastructure II was achieved in respectively November 2008 and August 2009 resulting in a current fund size of approximately €220 million with investors including ABP and the European Investment Bank. The fund has a final target size of €500 million and a third closing is expected for the fourth quarter of 2009.
DIF has offices in the Netherlands, France, UK and Germany.
WKN Windkraft Nord AG
WKN Windkraft Nord AG has planned, installed and operated turnkey wind parks in Germany since 1990. In addition, WKN AG is also expanding abroad and is internationally represented by subsidiaries in numerous European countries and the USA. Up to now, the company initiated and realized a total of 1,000 megawatts capacity wind energy. WKN AG is part of the innovative “House of Future Energies” corporate network in Husum, an established center of excellence for renewable energy sources in Germany. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of BGZ Beteiligungsgesellschaft Zukunftsenergien AG, or BGZ AG for short.
Husum, October 5, 2009
Publication and Reprint free of charge; please send a voucher copy to
WKN Windkraft Nord AG or DIF.
Attention editorial offices: For further questions please contact:
Mrs. Catrin Petersen
Communication & Marketing Manager of the BGZ Group
WKN Windkraft Nord AG
House of Future Energies
Otto-Hahn-Strasse 12 – 16
25813 Husum, Germany
Tel: +49 (0) 4841 – 89 44 100
Fax: +49 (0) 4841 – 89 44 225
Internet: http://www.wkn-ag.de
Wim Blaasse
Managing Partner DIF
Tel: +31 (0)20 – 717 3151
E-Mail: mailto:w.blaasse@dif.eu
Internet: http://www.dif.eu
registered are: 