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About us
Amber is a leading international investment manager. For over 15 years, we have mobilised capital into essential, responsible infrastructure.

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Amber manages or advises eight funds with over £5 billion in funds under management. With a presence across 12 countries, Amber manages 175 infrastructure investments representing total assets under management of £14 billion.

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Lincs OFTO

  • Credit: GEO-4D
Energy
Energy Transmission

The Lincs Offshore Transmission Owner (‘OFTO’) is the critical link connecting the Lincs offshore wind farm to the UK’s national grid, enabling the generation of green electricity for approximately 240,000 homes. Situated 8 kilometres off Skegness on the east coast of England, this project consists of both onshore and offshore electricity export cables, as well as substations.

Sector
Energy
Energy Transmission
Location
Lincolnshire, England
Status
Operational
Equity Ownership
100%
Financial close
November 2014
Initial revenue term
20 years

Strategic significance of OFTOs

Offshore wind generation is a success story for the UK. Long-term government support has underpinned innovation and investment in the sector, helping to drive down costs while contributing to decarbonisation of the economy.

The UK is one of the world's largest markets for offshore wind with over 10GW of installed capacity. The British Energy Security Strategy published in April 2022, saw a further increase in the Government's offshore wind target, to 50GW of offshore wind energy by 2030, up from c. 10GW in 2020. The UK continues to provide significant support for offshore wind, and we anticipate that the technology will play a key role in helping the UK meet net zero by 2050.

Image of Lincs offshore site

To support this increase in offshore renewable energy generation, the UK government identified that a new approach to developing transmission networks would be required and developed the offshore transmission regulatory regime. INPP recognised this opportunity and strategically positioned itself as one of the very few original consulting parties to Ofgem on the regime in 2009.

As the UK aims for an ambitious renewable energy future, INPP’s investment in the Lincs OFTO represents a strategic alignment with the country’s long-term vision, acting as an enabler of secure, scalable, and sustainable green electricity

Lincs OFTO

In November 2014, INPP successfully reached financial close on the long-term ownership and operation of the transmission link to the 270MW Lincs offshore wind farm.

Capacity

0 MW

Lincs offshore wind farm

The project relates to the transmission cable connection to the offshore wind farm. The wind farm consists of 75 x 3.6MW wind turbine generators connected to an offshore substation platform (owned by the OFTO) located within the boundaries of the Lincs wind farm.

Number of homes

0,000

Lincs OFTO enables the Lincs offshore wind farm to transmit green electricity to around 240,000 UK homes, translating into an immediate and impactful contribution to the UK's renewable energy capabilities. Furthermore, it supports INPP's broader objective of generating secure, sustainable, and inflation-linked returns for its investors, while at the same time promoting a cleaner and more resilient energy system for the future.

Key impacts and benefits

Capital cost of transmission assets

£ 0.0 m

Estimated homes powered

0 k

Estimated Carbon Saving Equivalent

0,0

t CO2e p.a1
Inflation protection

0 %

index-linked revenue

Why we invest in OFTOs

OFTOs offer favourable risk-adjusted returns together with an inflation-projected yield profile and direct environmental benefits.

  • Risk-adjusted returns: Transmission license grants the OFTO an availability-based revenue stream with downside protection whereby potential deductions are capped at 10% of base revenue in any year
  • Inflation-protected revenues: Revenue is 100% index-linked to the UK’s Retail Price Index (‘RPI’), or Consumer Price Index (‘CPI’) for future assets
  • Regulatory backing: Revenues are contracted by a regulated subsidiary of National Grid, National Grid Electricity System Operator (‘NGESO’), which is protected by special energy administration rules under the Energy Act 2004, creating a ‘look through’ to UK government risk
  • Cash flow stability: Protections provided through the OFTO’s transmission license provide compensation to downside scenarios for events outside the OFTO’s reasonable control, providing further certainty of cash flows
  • Immediate yield: Operational and immediately yielding with no construction or refinancing risk. The operations and maintenance of the OFTO portfolio have been subcontracted to a set of specialist contractors incentivised to maximise availability
  • Sustainability impact: Investment supports the UK transition towards a low carbon economy with the aim of achieving a decarbonised electricity system by 2035 and net zero by 2050

OFTO asset transfers timeline

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted by UN Member States in 2015

SDGs supported:

SDG contribution

Outcomes

INPP looks to create both financial and societal value and the OFTO portfolio stands as a leading example of how strategic investment can generate stable revenues while significantly advancing the UK’s green energy transition.

  • Revenue certainty: Secure and highly predictable, index-linked cash flows which have had and will continue to have zero revenue or penalty exposure due to wind farm performance
  • Energy generation: The OFTO portfolio currently provides more than 4,000MW of clean energy to the UK population1
  • Societal impact: An estimated 3.7 million homes are capable of being powered by the OFTO portfolio1
  • Environmental benefit: INPP’s current portfolio of OFTO assets save an estimated 2.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent annually2

 

  1. Data provided directly from wind farm owners. Figure may vary depending on actual wind generated and transmitted, which is naturally variable

  2. Estimated by multiplying the installed capacity in MW by the number of hours in a year (8,760) and then multiplying this by the assumed capacity factor wind (39%) expressed as a fraction of 1 (i.e. by 0.39), multiplied by 1,000 (kWh). This answer is then multiplied by the UK grid emission factor of 0.193 (kgCO2e/kWh)

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