Statoil (STO) To Assume Operatorship Of Sheringham Shoal

Statoil (OL:STL) ASA (NYSE:STO) and Statkraft recently inked a letter of intent relating to the former gaining operatorship of the Sheringham Shoal Offshore Wind Farm. The effective date for the transfer of operatorship is Jan 1, 2017.

Located off the coast of Norfolk, Sheringham Shoal is one of the 10 largest producing offshore wind farms in the world that supply renewable energy to about 220,000 U.K. homes. Sheringham Shoal has been operational since 2012 and has a capacity of 317 megawatt (MW).

Statoil and Statkraft each hold a 40% share in Sheringham Shoal, while the remaining 20% is held by the UK Green Investment Bank.

The deal will also enable Statoil to increase its share in the Dogger Bank projects to about 50% from its current ownership of 25% through the acquisition of Statkraft’s share in Dogger Bank. The final shareholding in Dogger Bank and the transfer of operatorship for Sheringham Shoal, is awaiting partner and government approvals.

The world's largest offshore wind development – Dogger Bank – has received approval for an agreed target installed capacity of 4800 MW. Overall, the Dogger Bank projects have the potential to provide renewable energy to about 5 million U.K. homes.

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Statoil’s latest announcement corresponds with the opening of its onshore base for the Dudgeon offshore wind farm in Great Yarmouth. Sheringham Shoal and Dudgeon are creating a total of 85 jobs in the Norfolk area.

Statoil plays a very important role as an investor in the U.K. energy. Some of the projects include the Mariner oil development offshore Aberdeen, which the largest investment in the U.K. continental shelf in a decade, the Hywind pilot park offshore Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, the world’s first floating wind farm. Statoil is also a primary exporter of oil and gas to the U.K.

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Statoil currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked players from the energy sector are Matador Resources Company (NYSE:MTDR) , NGL Energy Partners LP (NYSE:NGL) and Enviva Partners L.P. (NYSE:EVA) . All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

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