Vestas sells stake in Africa’s flagship wind farm to BlackRock-owned fund

The manufacturer supplied the 310MW Lake Turkana project with 365 of its V52-850 wind turbines, and today (19 February) confirmed that it had sold its 12.5% stake in the wind farm. Vestas will continue to service the turbines at the project. 

Climate Finance Partnership (CFP) – which is managed by global investment major BlackRock – bought Vestas’s shares for an undisclosed price. 

The deal was first announced in March 2023. Technology major Google had earlier announced plans to buy the 12.5% stake, but later pulled out.

The project sits on the shores of Lake Turkana in northern Kenya and is among the largest wind farms currently operating in Africa. Vestas claims it generates enough electricity to meet approximately 14% of Kenya’s total electricity demand. 

Vestas stated that the sale of its shares echoed a wider approach to help develop wind farms without becoming a long-term owner. 

The Lake Turkana project includes a 428km transmission line, the construction of which was delayed amid political and financial uncertainties before the wind farm was officially commissioned in 2018.