Mr. Connor Teskey reports

BROOKFIELD ACQUIRES SHARE OF FOUR UK OFFSHORE WIND FARMS FROM ORSTED

Orsted has signed a partnership agreement with Brookfield Asset Management Ltd., its institutional partners, and its listed affiliate Brookfield Renewable Corp. and Brookfield Renewable Partners LP, which will acquire 12.45-per-cent minority stakes in four of Orsted's operational United Kingdom offshore wind farms: Hornsea 1, Hornsea 2, Walney Extension and Burbo Bank Extension, which have a combined total capacity of approximately 3.5 gigawatts (GW).

The enterprise value of the transaction is $2.3-billion ($570-million net to Brookfield Renewable). Brookfield is pursuing this transaction through Brookfield Infrastructure Fund V, the world's largest infrastructure fund. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2024, subject to customary regulatory approvals.

With this transaction, Orsted makes significant progress on the farm-down program announced as part of the February business plan update while ensuring a high level of value retention within the transaction. For Brookfield, the investment provides the opportunity to partner with Orsted, the world's largest and leading offshore wind player, to invest in a scaled, fully operational offshore wind portfolio. This marks another step in Brookfield's expansion into the offshore wind sector, which is a mature technology with a complementary generation profile to solar PV and onshore wind.

Orsted will retain a 37.55-per-cent ownership interest in the four assets and will continue to exercise a similar level of control and governance as before the transaction. Orsted will also continue to oversee the operations and maintenance of the wind farms, according to the current service agreements. All four assets are fully operational under long-term inflation-linked contracts for difference (CfD).

Mads Nipper, group president and chief executive officer of Orsted, said: "We're pleased to welcome Brookfield, a leading renewable energy investor with proven investment and operational expertise, as a partner in four U.K. offshore wind farms in one of Orsted's core strategic markets. Today's transaction is an important milestone in the farm-down program as part of our business plan, supporting our significant reinvestment in new assets."

Connor Teskey, chief executive officer of Brookfield Renewable and president of Brookfield Asset Management, said: "We are pleased to be partnering with Orsted to invest in four high-quality assets that are critical to supplying the U.K. with renewable power and supporting the country's decarbonization objectives. This is Brookfield's first investment in U.K. offshore wind, which will continue to be a critical part of the energy mix and to support the growing demand we see for clean energy."

The agreement includes a call option, providing Orsted with the opportunity, but no obligation, to repurchase the assets from Brookfield between two and seven years from the closing of the transaction at a preagreed price.

As the leading offshore wind developer in the U.K., Orsted currently operates more than five GW of offshore wind capacity and has an additional five GW under construction or in development, including the Hornsea 3 and Hornsea 4 projects, both of which have secured CfDs. Globally, Orsted has installed 15.4 GW of renewable energy across offshore wind, onshore wind, solar PV and battery storage, and has another 7.7 GW under construction.

About Brookfield Asset Management Ltd.

Brookfield Asset Management is a leading global alternative asset manager with approximately $1-trillion of assets under management. It invests client capital for the long-term with a focus on real assets and essential service businesses that form the backbone of the global economy. It offers a range of alternative investment products to investors around the world -- including public and private pension plans, endowments and foundations, sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, insurance companies, and private wealth investors.

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