Iberdrola seeks partner for 1 GW renewables portfolio, sources say

By Andres Gonzalez and Pietro Lombardi

MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish energy company Iberdrola is seeking a partner willing to buy a minority stake in a roughly 1 gigawatt renewables portfolio, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The sources described the project as "Romeo 2.0," referring to a 1.3 GW portfolio of wind and solar assets in which Norway's sovereign wealth fund took a 49% stake in 2023 in a deal valuing the assets at some 1.2 billion euros ($1.30 billion). That project was named Romeo.

The deal would be in line with the company's strategy of selling minority stakes in more advanced projects to help fund new investments.

Last month, Iberdrola Finance Chief Jose Sainz Armada said the company was working on two or three asset rotation projects - whereby the firm invests in new projects by selling stakes in more advanced ones - that it hoped to complete this year.

Evercore is advising the Spanish firm, one of the people said. 

The process is at an early stage, the sources said. The valuation would depend on the exact mix of wind and solar assets involved. The sources declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the matter.

Iberdrola declined to comment and Evercore did not respond to a request for comment.

In recent years, Iberdrola has also partnered with companies like Masdar and Japan's Kansai Electric Power.

($1 = 0.9233 euros)

(Reporting by Andres Gonzalez and Pietro Lombardi; Editing by Aislinn Laing and Jamie Freed)