TotalEnergies acquires West Burton Energy for £450 Million, expanding UK power portfolio

TotalEnergies signed an agreement with EIG, a leading institutional investor in the global energy sector, to acquire all shares of West Burton Energy for £450 million (US $ 575.8 million), including the West Burton B gas-fired power plant, in a strategic move to enhance its position as an integrated electricity player.

West Burton Energy's assets feature the West Burton B power plant, one of the UK’s most advanced power stations. Located in Nottinghamshire, the facility boasts three combined-cycle gas turbines (CCGT) with a total output of 1.3 GW, enough to supply electricity to approximately 1.8 million homes. The plant was commissioned in 2013 and later augmented with a 49 MW battery storage system in 2018.

Strengthening renewable capabilities

This acquisition significantly bolsters TotalEnergies' renewable power generation capacity in the UK. By incorporating a flexible asset like West Burton B, TotalEnergies can mitigate the intermittency of renewable sources, ensuring a reliable power supply to its customers. The company's renewable portfolio in the UK currently includes 1.1 GW of gross installed capacity and 4.5 GW under development. Given its needs, TotalEnergies plans to divest 50% of the newly acquired gas-based power generation capacity, equivalent to 700 MW.

In addition to enhancing its renewable energy capabilities, the acquisition will strengthen TotalEnergies' trading operations in the UK’s electricity and gas markets. This move is expected to improve the company's ability to deliver affordable, available, and sustainable energy to its 300,000 UK electricity and gas customer sites. The plant will be supplied using TotalEnergies' existing natural gas production operations in the country, where it manages 30% of the projects.

With this acquisition, TotalEnergies' global portfolio of flexible power generation now reaches approximately 7 GW of gross capacity, complementing its 23 GW of gross renewable capacity.

Stéphane Michel, President of Gas, Renewables, and Power at TotalEnergies, expressed his enthusiasm about the acquisition by saying, “I am delighted to welcome the West Burton B team to TotalEnergies. This acquisition contributes to our integrated strategy in the UK, which combines renewable and flexible generation capacity. It complements our 1.1 GW Seagreen offshore wind farm and allows us to accelerate development of our Integrated Power activities in power generation, trading and marketing in this market. The deal also contributes directly to our 2028 ROACE target of around 12% in this business sector.”

The transaction is pending authorisation from relevant authorities.