This article has been updated since publication after we were told that Octopus Energy Generation will be taking on the day-to-day management of RPC’s portfolio.
A deal appears to have been struck between energy company Octopus Energy Generation and developer Renewable Power Capital (RPC), after the latter’s directors and headquarters officially changed to those of Octopus Energy Generation.
On March 31, a raft of executives at both Renewable Power Capital Limited and Renewable Power Capital Spain Holdings Limited ceased to be company directors and were replaced by executives from Octopus Energy Generation, documents at Companies House show. (RPC has registered offices in Great Britain and Spain.)
Octopus Energy Generation is the clean energy investment and asset management arm of Octopus Energy, a utility company.
Laura Halstead and Idil Bayram, head of funds & sustainability and investment director of Octopus Energy Generation respectively, have been appointed directors of Renewable Power Capital Limited. Bayram also became director of the Spanish entity, alongside Paul Rees, also a senior executive at Octopus Energy Generation.
The registered office of both RPC business entities also changed from RPC’s listed London office address to that of Octopus Energy (UK House, 5th Floor, 164-182 Oxford Street, London, W1D 1NN). Both entities also issued a ‘capital statement following an allotment of shares’, issued a few days before the director change, with Renewable Power Capital Limited’s capital totaling more than £31 million.
The changes most likely point to an acquisition of RPC by Octopus Energy Generation.
However, a source with knowledge of the matter told Solar Power Portal that this deal effectively involves Octopus Energy Generation taking on management of RPC’s portfolio, and not an acquisition of RPC. RPC remains the property of CPPIB, the daily management has just been transferred to Octopus Energy Generation.
We have reached out to Octopus Energy and RPC for comment and will update this article once a response is received.
RPC was launched in the UK by Canadian pension investor and asset manager CPP Investments (CPPIB), in 2020. Since then, it has expanded its renewable energy and battery storage activities into multiple European markets. Recent UK activities include the BESS project planning consents we have reported on in January And November.
It appears that mergers and acquisitions in the UK clean energy market will accelerate this year now that fixed Gate 2 connection dates are starting to appear, as part of the grid connection queuing reform. As the connection date of projects becomes clearer, it becomes easier to value them, making transactions possible.
