- The deal provides financing for the construction of 50 MW “La Fernandina” project in Badajoz, 50 MW “Miramundo” Project in Cádiz, and 50 MW “Zafra” Project in Sevilla.
- The projects will reach commercial operation in 2019 and will provide energy equivalent to the consumption of 78,000 households.
Multinational firm Opdenergy, which specializes in the development, finance, construction, and operation of renewable assets, and the European infrastructure fund Marguerite, announce they have closed three project finance agreements for the construction of 150 MW of utility-scale solar projects in Spain.
The first agreement was signed with Banco Sabadell and Bankinter for a 50 MW power project called “La Fernandina” located in Mérida in the province of Badajoz.
The second and third agreements were signed with Banco Sabadell for a 50 MW project called “Miramundo” located in Puerto Real in the province of Cádiz and for another 50 MW project called “Zafra” located in Alcalá de Guadaira in the province of Sevilla.
Marguerite acquired an 80% interest in each project at closing. The three projects are already under construction and on track to achieve commercial operation by the end of the year.
Luis Cid, CEO of Opdenergy points out that “the signing of these 3 project finance agreements highlights our company’s strength in project development and financial structuring within the utility-scale solar photovoltaic market”. He also emphasizes that “we are proud to have the trust of several top-level banks, which demonstrates our projects meet the high standards of quality and performance required for this type of investment”.
These photovoltaic projects built by Opdenergy are three of the projects awarded to the company in the last auction promoted by the Ministry of Energy, Tourism and Digital Agenda. Each project has a bilateral power purchase agreement (PPA) with Centrica, an investment-grade counterparty.
Banco Sabadell and Bankinter have been advised by Gold Abogados, Altermia and Marsh. Opdenergy and Marguerite, have been advised by Watson Farley & Williams and Our New Energy.
The construction of these three projects will create 600 new jobs at the peak of their construction period including local subcontractors.
Once operational, the three plants will generate energy equivalent to the annual consumption of more than 78,000 homes, avoiding the emission of 120,000 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere per year, according to the emission factors published by the Spanish Office of Climate Change (OECC).
