Britain's SSE eyes overseas growth with bids in US, Dutch offshore wind auctions

British utility SSE PLC is preparing bids for offshore wind auctions in the Netherlands and U.S. as it continues its pursuit of overseas renewables opportunities in the face of investor pressure to break up the business.

In the Netherlands, the company intends to bid in the 1.4-GW Hollandse Kust West tender planned for the first half of this year, while in the U.S., SSE is among 25 eligible bidders in the country's largest-ever lease sale for offshore wind in the New York Bight, to be held in February.

Together, the ventures form part of SSE's "net-zero acceleration program" that will see the utility invest £12.5 billion to double its net installed renewables capacity to 8 GW by 2026.

SSE's entire portfolio is currently located in the U.K. and Ireland. However, in 2021 it struck a deal with Acciona SA to pursue offshore wind opportunities in Spain and Portugal, and entered an agreement with a local developer in Japan granting access to 10 GW of early-stage offshore wind farms. It also participated unsuccessfully in an offshore wind tender in Denmark.

The company's investment plan was announced in November 2021, and came after activist U.S. hedge fund Elliott Management Corp., a top five shareholder in SSE, had lobbied extensively for the company to split off its renewables business into a separate entity.

Responding to the new strategy in its first public engagement with SSE, Elliott said in December 2021 that the company's existing corporate structure — which includes a sprawling portfolio of regulated power networks — serves "as a ceiling on the company's ability to reach its full potential."

If SSE is successful in the Dutch offshore wind auction, the projects are expected to be commissioned in 2025 and 2026. The tender window is open between April 14 and May 12, with the winners announced in the summer.

The New York Bight lease sale includes more than 480,000 acres offshore New York and New Jersey that the U.S. Interior Department said could house up to 7 GW of wind capacity. Several other European energy companies are among the bidders, including RWE AG, Electricité de France SA, Iberdrola SA and Engie SA.