Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust (ORIT) has invested EUR 7.5 million into Simply Blue Holdings, the parent company of Simply Blue Group (SBG), a developer of sustainable marine projects focused on floating offshore wind.

The investment which is a co-investment alongside another fund managed by Octopus Renewables Limited (ORL), entitles it to a 12 percent interest in SBG. It is ORIT’s first venture into the offshore floating wind sector.

SBG has developed a pipeline of over 9GW of floating offshore wind projects to date, primarily in UK and Irish waters. With a background in marine development, SBG also has interests in wave energy and ancillary interests in sustainable aquaculture. The firm is headquartered in Cork, Ireland, with offices in the UK and US.

Commenting on the acquistion, Phil Austin, chairman of ORIT said: “This investment will further diversify ORIT’s potential to create capital growth and may in time bring opportunities to invest in construction ready asssets arisig from SBG’s development pipeline.”

Chris Gaydon, investment director at ORL, added: “Floating offshore wind is a particularly excting renewable energy sector which is expected to undergo rapid growth over the years to come and is a key part of government decarbinisation plans in a number of Euopean countries. We believe Simply Blue in very well positioned to capture this growth.”