German multinational energy company RWE has signed an agreement with Norges Bank Investment Management ( NBIM ) as its new partner for the Nordseecluster and Thor offshore wind projects currently under construction.

NBIM will acquire a 49% stake in both projects. RWE remains in charge of construction and operations throughout the lifecycle of the offshore wind farms.

The agreed purchase price is approximately €1.4 billion ( US$1.51 billion ). Closing of this transaction is subject to customary approvals and expected by the start of Q3 2025. 

The NBIM fund aims to ensure a long-term management of revenue from Norway’s oil and gas resources. The fund’s formal name is the Government Pension Fund Global, and is one of the world's largest funds.

Investments are spread across most markets, countries and currencies to achieve broad exposure to global growth and value creation while ensuring good risk diversification. The fund invests only abroad.

The Nordseecluster is located approximately 50 kilometres north of the island of Juist. This area in the German Bight is dedicated to offshore wind. The RWE project is in the most southerly row of offshore projects within the exclusive economic zone and is bordered to the north and south by main shipping traffic separation routes.

With a total capacity of up to 1.6 gigawatts, the Nordseecluster will generate enough green electricity to supply the equivalent of 1.6 million homes. It will be constructed in two phases. For the 660-megawatt Nordseecluster A ( NC 1 and NC 2 ), manufacturing of some key components has already started. Construction at sea is scheduled to begin this year. By the beginning of 2027, all wind turbines should be fully connected to the grid. The 900MW Nordseecluster B ( NC 3 and NC 4 ) is scheduled to start commercial operation from the beginning of 2029.

RWE is building the Thor offshore wind farm in the Danish North Sea, on the west coast of Jutland, approximately 22 kilometres from Thorsminde in the municipality of Holstebro. With a planned capacity of more than 1,000MW, Thor is Denmark’s largest offshore wind farm to date.

Once fully operational, which is planned no later than the end of 2027, the wind farm will be capable of producing enough green electricity to supply the equivalent of more than a million households, or one in three Danish households.

The projects will have long-term contracted revenues that provide stable cash flows and reduce risks to the projects. 

With more than 20 years of experience in the development, construction and operation of offshore wind farms, RWE is one of the world’s leading players in the offshore wind sector. The company operates 19 offshore wind farms. In addition to Nordseecluster and Thor, RWE is building the Sofia offshore wind farm off the coast of England, and OranjeWind off the coast of the Netherlands.