Norton Rose Fulbright advises bp on landmark offshore wind joint venture

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has advised bp on its agreement to form a new offshore wind focused joint venture (JV) with JERA CO., Inc.

The newly formed JV, named JERA Nex bp and based in London, will be owned 50/50 by bp and JERA and will be one of the largest global offshore wind developers, owners and operators. The global business will focus on operating assets and development projects totalling 13GW of potential net generating capacity.

With committed capital funding for investments of up to $5.8 billion by 2030, JERA Nex bp intends to accelerate development from the combined pipeline and bolster access to competitive financing. Both companies are expected to contribute operating assets with around 1GW of net generating capacity as well as high-quality projects with around 7.5GW of capacity and leases with around 4.5GW of potential capacity.

In the first instance, JERA Nex bp will look to progress existing projects in North-West Europe, Australia and Japan whilst continuing to foster a pipeline of significant long-term prospects.

Subject to any regulatory and other approvals, the JV is expected to complete in the third quarter of 2025.

The multi-disciplinary and cross border team from Norton Rose Fulbright advised bp on all aspects of the JV. The team was led by London-based partner Chris Grieves who was supported by: 

• Competition – partner Ian Giles and Brussels-based counsel Violetta Bourt.
• Corporate – counsels Sarah Tonks and Chris Baird, senior associate Akbar Khawaja as well as associates Tayo Hagger-David, Katherine MacPhail and Dennis Ng.
• Employment – partner Catrina Smith, counsel Nick Howard and associate Emily Bailey.
• Environmental – partner Lucy Bruce Jones and associate Andrew Swarbrick.
• IP and data privacy – partners Mike Knapper and Marcus Evans, counsel Fiona Bundy-Clarke and associates Alex Redbourne and George Hairs.
• Litigation/compliance – partner David Harris and associate Lubna Fahoum.
• Pensions – partner Lesley Browning, counsel Graeme Tricker and senior associate Suzie Kemp.
• Projects – partner Melusi Dlamini and associate Charles Winch.
• Real estate – partner Charles Pinkerton and senior associate Helen Finnis.
• Tax – partner Matthew Hodkin and counsel Fareed Muhammed.

They were also assisted by Norton Rose Fulbright’s teams in Australia, Germany, Japan and the Netherlands.

Chris Grieves commented:

“bp and JERA CO., Inc’s new joint venture marks an important milestone for global offshore wind activity. The combined business has an extensive portfolio of operating and development assets in Europe and Asia-Pacific and we are delighted to have supported bp on this strategic transaction.”