DOE selects industrial decarbonisation projects

Barclays has committed to a US$140m tax equity transaction to back Lightsource BP's 180MW Prairie Ronde solar project in St Landry Parish, Louisiana. The deal is one of the first to be led by Barclays’ sustainable project finance team, working in partnership with the bank’s energy transition group. Barclays was sole investor on the tax equity transaction, which will support its target to facilitate US$1trn of sustainable and transition financing by the end of 2030. Lightsource BP plans to build, own, and operate the solar project, which is...

Maryland's Board of Public Works has approved an additional US$425m for construction of the Purple Line light rail transit project, the fourth infusion of funding since 2016, according to Maryland Matters. The funds will be paid to Purple Line Transit Partners, comprising Star America and Meridiam, over several years and are contingent upon achieving milestones after years of delays. The latest funding increase brings the cost of the Purple Rail to nearly US$10bn. The project's opening was recently delayed from spring 2027 to December. When...

Constellation Energy Generation priced a US$900m offering of 30-year green bonds at 145bp over Treasuries to yield 5.75%, inside initial price talk in the range of 170bp–175bp. Lead underwriters are Barclays, Credit Agricole, and Mizuho. Proceeds will be used to fund eligible projects which include Constellation's acquisition of NRG Energy's stake in the 2.6GW South Texas nuclear plant in a deal valued at US$1.75bn. The 44% stake represents about 1.1GW of output. S&P rated the notes BBB+.

The Kern County Board of Supervisors in California has voted in favour of a plan for a micro steel mill with solar power and is preparing to vote on two additional solar projects with storage proposed for the Mojave-Rosamond area. San Diego-based Pacific Steel Group won approval for the Mojave Micro Mill that would turn scrap metal and raw material into rebar for use in construction. The project would also include a carbon capture component and a 63-acre solar array. Two solar projects awaiting vote are being proposed by Terra-Gen and EDF...

Cuba's Minister of Energy Vicente de la O Levy says the country will install 2GW of solar capacity from 92 ground-mounted photovoltaic plants across the island. The capacity is expected to be added by 2028. Cuba has suffered from a lack of access to fuel and sees solar as a way to improve the grid in the country. The country has over 250MW of installed capacity currently from 75 solar farms. “We have opted to get out of the crisis with our own resources, despite the energy situation we are facing,” said the minister. “We had very bad months...

Rio Tinto will invest US$350m at its Rincon lithium plant as it looks to begin commercial operation by year-end, chief executive Jakob Stausholm said on a visit to the site. Rio Tinto bought the project in early 2022 from Sentient Equity Partners for US$825m. The company earlier this year landed the socio-environmental permit from Salta province for its 3,000 tonne per year first phase of the Rincon lithium project. Rincon is a large undeveloped lithium brine project located in the heart of the lithium triangle in the Salta Province of...

Consorcio Panama Cuarto Puente, through special purpose vehicle Panama Infrastructure Receivable Purchaser, has closed a US$119m 4(a)(2) debt private placement backing construction of the US$1.3bn fourth bridge over the Panama Canal. Mizuho and Banistmo were structuring agents on the deal, advised by Latham & Watkins. Santander was set to be part of the group but withdrew. The senior secured notes are due in 2026 and were issued under a multi-tranche structure allowing additional notes to be issued to finance the remainder of the works, which...

The Metro Line 1 SAS consortium is expected to sign this month and close in June the long-term project finance package backing works on the Bogota Metro line 1 public-private partnership project, Primera Linea del Metro para Bogota (PLMB). Overall costs are slated to be around US$4.5bn. So far, the Inter-American Development Bank has approved a conditional US$600m credit line and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development has approved US$600m, with the European Investment Bank committing to a US$480m deal. There is a US$90m...

The US Department of the Interior is looking to hold a second offshore wind lease auction in the Gulf of Mexico that could support 5GW of capacity. The solicitation will offer four lease areas totalling 410,060 acres off the coasts of Louisiana and Texas. The department through the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has opened a 60-day comment period before a decision will be made whether to pursue the auction. The areas are part of wider zones that were officially designated as suitable for offshore wind deployment last October. The first...

Denham Sustainable Infrastructure-backed Ceiba Energy has closed the sale of a 1.6GW capacity reserve contract associated with its 1.6GW Portocem gas-fired IPP project to New Fortress Energy. NFE will pay US$97m to Ceiba in the form of convertible preferred shares and will also assume a US$28m liability. Ceiba retains the site of Portocem at Ceara, including related permits and contracts, and plans to build a new LNG-to-power plant at the location – the 2.2GW Jandaia project. Ceiba intends to bid Jandaia into this August’s capacity auction....

It is an era for deep-pocket sponsors. Altice France spooked the high-yield debt market last week by suggesting during a bondholder call that "creditor participation in discounted transactions" would be needed to reduce its net debt to below four times adjusted earnings. The company's unsecured bonds apparently fell 20% during the conference call. The company has €20bn in secured debt and €4bn in unsecured debt. Overall, Altice has €60bn in debt. The group has plenty of assets including a 25% stake in UK telecom giant BT but the issues at...

ACWA Power is taking a US$47m hit on a forced outage at its 150MW Noor III concentrated solar power (CSP) tower project due to a leak in the hot molten salts tank. The outage is currently expected to last until November this year. The repairs to the project will involve repairs to the tank and potentially building a new tank. Two years ago, the company announced a US$73.5m hit on the project due to a molten salt tank leakage that put the plant out of action. Final completion date on Noor III was delayed and in 2019 and 2020 the plant had...

Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) has raised a US$1.16bn equivalent dual currency debt package from a global syndicate of 11 lenders. The three-year syndicated loan was launched at US$1bn and was upsized after being 49% oversubscribed. First Abu Dhabi Bank, Mashreqbank, MUFG and Standard Chartered acted as global coordinators and ICBC was China Coordinator. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, Emirates NDB Bank, Mizuho and SMBC were initial MLAs and bookrunners and Bank of China and Societe Generale were initial MLAs. Bank Muscat and Intesa Sanpaolo...

The Cobra and Alkhorayef Water & Power Technologies team has reached financial close on the first independent water transmission project (IWTP), the 150km, US$624m 500,000m3/day Rayis-Rabigh project. Debt totalled US$500m and was provided by Riyad, Saudi Fransi, Abu Dhabi Investment Bank and Commercial Bank of Dubai. Construction will take 30 months and the operating period is 35 years. Alderbrook advised the sponsor. Synergy Consulting, DLA Piper and Fichtner are advising the client Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC) on the IWTP programme...

ACWA Power has refinanced US$580m of the US$1.1bn of project debt on its 1,500MW and 50m gallons per day Al Dur 2 project via a new loan from Ahli United Bank, Apicorp, Al Rajhi Bank, Arab National Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, Gulf International Bank, KfW IPEX-Bank, National Bank of Bahrain, Riyad Bank and Standard Chartered. The project was financed in mid-2019 via an uncovered tranche for 60% of the debt with an average price of 400bp, ranging from 375bp to 490bp and a Euler Hermes covered tranche. ACWA was the financial adviser on the...

The Ventyr Nordsjo II consortium of JERA-owned Parkwind and IKEA-backed Ingka have won Norway’s maiden offshore wind auction for the 1.5GW Sorlige Nordsjo II (SN2) project. Just two bidders took part in the auction, with Ventyr’s winning bid offering NKr1.15 per kWh (€0.099/kWh). The Ministry declined to comment on who the other bidder was. A contract for difference will be signed within four weeks of the award. The auction consisted of a 40-minute preliminary bidding round with each following bid taking place over 10-minute rounds. ...

German wind turbine manufacturer Nordex will supply turbines to develop a 336MW cluster of wind projects in South Africa's Eastern Cape province. Nordex said that it will supply 57 turbines in total and that the cluster includes three projects of 112.1MW each, due to start operations in 2025. Nordex declined to disclose the customer, but there is one project in the Eastern Cape province that perfectly matches the order. Enel Green Power is building a 336MW wind cluster there that consists of three projects with individual capacities of...

The financing is due to wrap up shortly for Marubeni's US$600m 900,000-tonnes-per-year Abu Dhabi waste-to-energy scheme. Abu Dhabi Waste Management Center (Tadweer) will hold the local 60% interest in the scheme, with Masdar apparently no longer involved. Marubeni will hold 40%. The Marubeni team includes Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation. Standard Chartered fully underwrote the US$500m of soft mini-perm project debt and is selling the debt down to local and Japanese banks. Synergy Consulting is advising Marubeni, Ramboll,...

Enbridge, WhiteWater, I Squared and MPLX have agreed to combine the Whistler and Rio Bravo gas pipelines in a joint venture. Enbridge will contribute its Rio Bravo project and US$350m in cash for an ownership stake in the joint venture. The ownership structure will be WhiteWater/I Squared, 50.6%, MPLX, 30.4%, and Enbridge, 19%. Enbridge will fund the first US$150m of the post-closing capex to complete Rio Bravo and will retain a 25% economic interest in Rio Bravo as part of its investment. WhiteWater will continue to operate the joint venture's...

LNG developer Pieridae Energy expects the sale of its proposed C$10bn (US$7.3bn) Goldboro LNG project in Nova Scotia to conclude in the first half of this year, the company said in its Q4 results report. Pieridae launched a sale process for the project last year as it aimed to move away from east coast LNG prospects and toward an Alberta-focused natural gas production and processing business. The company is selling the project's licences, permits, and 108 hectares of undeveloped land. It will use proceeds from the sale to pay down a C$22m...

Sri Lanka plans to call for tenders for a 50MW wind plant in north-east Mannar, energy and power minister Kanchana Wijesekera told reporters, one of 10 wind and solar plants that the government plans to offer to investors. “A lot of investors are showing interest,” Wijesekera said. The ministry is understood to have auctioned the 100MW Siyambalanduwa ground-mounted solar farm in Uva. The minister said bids came in at US$0.08 per kWh. “That is about Rs25–Rs26 a unit,” Wijesekera said. Agreements with the bidders, believed to be The Blue Circle...

Wpd has committed to invest Ps392.4bn (US$7bn) in offshore wind farms in the provinces of Cavite, Negros Occidental and Guimaras in the Philippines. The commitment was made during a recent meeting in Berlin between the Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and wpd officials led by its chief finance officer Björn Nullmeyer. The planned wind farms have a combined capacity of 3,260W. Marcos met the wpd officials to discuss status updates on their Bureau of Investments-registered OSW projects. “I think that it is a very fertile investment,...

The Department of Transportation, Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) and San Miguel Corporation has signed the Ps170.6bn (US$3bn) the concession agreement for the rehabilitation and modernisation project for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA). The agreement was signed by the country’s transportation secretary Jaime Bautista, MIAA general manager Eric Ines and San Miguel Corporation president and CEO Ramon Ang with Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos Jr as a witness. The winning consortium SMC-SAP comprises San Miguel...

The US$4.85bn Pengerang Energy Complex project (PEC) of ChemOne has received a boost with a US$100m loan commitment from the Islamic Development Bank Board. The bank’s board has approved the facility under its public-private partnership programme. Other lenders are expected to commit soon to the US$3bn debt financing being raised for the project. These include Islamic Corporation for Development of the Private Sector which is another ISDB subsidiary and is likely to come in with US$50m. Other potential lenders are Al Rajhi Bank, National Bank...

Inpex and financial adviser Mizuho are expected to launch market sounding soon for the financing of the US$20bn Abadi LNG project in Indonesia. Inpex, which has Pertamina, 20%, and Petronas, 15%, as partners, was heard to be determining the amount of debt that will be raised, which is expected to be below the 75:25 debt-to-equity ratio. Pertamina and Petronas took over the stake held by Shell via subsidiaries Pertamina Hulu Energi and Petronas Masel, respectively. The market sounding is aimed to assess appetite for oil and gas projects as...

Japan Renewable Energy, Iberdrola Renewable Japan and Tohoku Electric Power have been selected to develop the 375MW Happo Noshiro offshore wind power project by the Ministry of Economy, Trade & Industry and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport & Tourism. The scheme is the fourth site offered under the Round 2 (R2) tender for offshore wind projects based on the country’s Renewable Energy Sea Area Utilization Act and is off the coast of Hachiho Town and Noshiro City in Akita Prefecture. The scheme will use 25 units of 15MW Vestas turbines...

Skyborn Renewables and its partners have kicked off the 2024 installation campaign for the 640MW Yunlin project off the coast of Taiwan, according to reports citing Skyborn. The foundations work will continue over the coming months and once completed, it is expected to power over 600,000 Taiwanese households. Construction began in 2029, but the Covid pandemic and supply chain disruptions and monopile troubles have caused significant delays, resulting in cost overruns and a debt restructuring that was finally approved in January this year. The...

China’s Huadian Group is partnering with Vietnam’s Minh Quang Technology to develop a hydrogen production plant in combination with a 1.2GW wind farm and an 800MW solar farm in Quang Tri. Total investment required will be about US$2.4bn, according to reports. The partners were said to have shared the plans at a meeting with provincial leaders earlier this month. According to reports, the first phase involves a hydrogen production plant in Dong Gio Linh industrial cluster along with 200MW of solar power. At the same time, the joint venture...

Sempra Infrastructure has hit taken a final investment decision on the development of the 320MW Cimarron wind project in Baja California, the third phase of the currently 263MW Energia Sierra Juarez wind complex. Project costs are US$550m. Commercial operation is due in late 2025. Sempra signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with Silicon Valley Power for the long-term supply of renewable energy to the City of Santa Clara, utilising its cross-border power connections to feed into the California Independent System Operator grid. The project...

South Korea’s SK Ecoplant, part of the SK Group, has signed a memorandum of understanding with BCG Energy, a subsidiary of Bamboo Capital Group, to develop renewable energy projects in Vietnam. Under the MoU, the two parties will co-develop solar and wind power projects with a total capacity of 700MW in Vietnam and these include 300MW of onshore wind, 300MW of rooftop solar, and 100MW of ground-mounted solar, according to reports. These projects will be located in Gia Lai province in the Central Highlands, which have strong wind resources,...

San Miguel Corp has started work on the 76.8km Pangasinan Link Expressway (PLEX) project, which will connect Bulacan International Airport to towns in the province of Pangasinan. “PLEX will connect to the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway at the Binalonan exit, providing direct access to the New Manila International Airport in Bulacan,” SMC said in a statement. The total cost has not been disclosed but the first phase – a 42.76km toll road between Binalonan and Lingayen cities – cost about Ps34bn (US$609m). PLEX is expected to reduce travel...

The South Korean government and the country's banks have committed to W420trn (US$313.4bn) in policy loans by 2030 to finance projects to reduce carbon emissions. The plan was announced in a meeting with the heads of five major banks and attended by the environment minister and head of the presidential commission on carbon neutrality and green growth, according to Yonhap news agency. State-run Korea Development Bank and the major commercial banks will create a W9trn fund to help finance the construction of green energy sources, according to...

The IRS Energy Credits Online portal went live this month with the goal of expanding the reach of clean energy tax credits enabled by the Inflation Reduction Act. A few days after launch the Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service provided some insight into how the market is evolving and which incentives are drumming up the most interest and activity in a report titled, “The Inflation Reduction Act: A Place-Based Analysis, Updates from Q3 and Q4 2023.” The Treasury said sponsors of an almost unfathomable 45,500 projects have...

KKR plans to invest about US$400m in telecom towers in the Philippines as part of its investment in Pinnacle Towers, the country’s largest independent telecoms tower operator. It plans to develop and acquire roughly 2,000 towers to support digital connectivity, according to a statement from the US Department of Commerce.

Australian company Meteoric Resources has signed a letter of intent with the US Export-Import Bank for US$250m for a debt financing that it hopes will anchor a larger project finance deal backing the Caldeira Rare Earth Ionic Clay project in Minas Gerais. With the support of Sprott Capital Partners (SCP), Meteoric has engaged Washington DC-based Woodford Resources for the initial phase of the senior debt financing process. The company has attracted the interest of both export credit agencies and government lenders. If Exim approves its...

Uncertainty about the Basel III regulations and the potential passage of a tax package in Congress has prevented the market from evolving as much as it could have this year. A July 2023 notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) implementing the regulators included a change to risk weighting for tax equity that has slowed and in some cases jeopardised wind, solar and other renewable energy projects which rely on tax equity investment. Under existing rules, tax equity receives a 100% risk weight if the bank’s total equity investments are below 10%...

Van Phong Power, a Sumitomo subsidiary, has connected the 1.3GW Van Phong 1 coal-fired power plant to Vietnam's national grid after achieving the commercial operation date. Sumitomo has been heard to be planning to divest up to 50% of its stake in the project. Van Phong 1 has a 25-year power purchase agreement with Vietnam Electricity and is one of the last few supercritical coal-fired schemes that received support from Japan. Total project cost is about US$2.58bn, of which US$2bn of debt was raised in 2019 to finance the project. JBIC provided...

Stonepeak has acquired 80% stake in TerraWind Renewables, an onshore wind energy platform owned by Shizen Energy which now holds the remaining 20% stake. TerraWind will focus on the development of onshore wind projects in Japan and across the Asia-Pacific region, according to a joint statement of the two parties. Shizen Energy, founded in 2011 and headquartered in Japan, focuses on the development, financing, and management of renewable energy power plants. It currently has an onshore wind platform consists of 30MW of late-stage development...

The South Korean government is planning to build a 47km superhighway with no speed limit in South Jeolla. The highway, estimated to cost W2.6trn (US$1.97bn), is being described as a "Korean equivalent to the German Autobahn”, according to reports. The road will connect Gwangju with the Korea International Circuit in Yeongam-gun. The government aims to conduct a preliminary study this year to “map out the road construction plan”.

ACEN Corp, the energy platform of the Ayala Group, is acquiring 40% stake in Real Wind Energy Inc (RWEI), the project company set up by Modern Energy Management (MEM) to develop a 500MW wind project in Quezon. “The transaction will potentially add 500MW of renewable energy to ACEN’s power generation portfolio,” ACEN said in disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange. It said it has signed an asset and share sale and purchase agreement with MEM, a renewable energy developer and adviser with its first office set up in Thailand in 2013. ACEN...

Credit Agricole has said it will not fund the US$10bn Papua LNG project in Papua New Guinea, Reuters reports. The bank is financial adviser to the project. Shareholders of Papua LNG project joint venture are operator TotalEnergies, 37.55%, ExxonMobil, 37.04%, Santos, 22.83%, JX Nippon, 2.58%. The PNG government via Kumul Petroleum Holdings has a back-in right for an equity stake of up to 20.5% and via Mineral Resources Development Company has a back-in right for 2%. The front-end engineering and design studies have been underway since 2023...

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has issued a request for qualifications seeking development companies and investors for new renewable energy generating projects, including solar, wind, battery storage and transmission. NYPA plans to prequalify firms that may be called upon over the next five years. Prequalified firms will be invited to respond to future requests for proposals or other types of procurement. “We expect responses to this RFQ to facilitate the creation of a stable of prequalified firms that NYPA can collaborate with quickly...

KKR portfolio company Aster Renewable Energy has secured an NT$8.25bn (US$258.5m) loan backing the development of its 149.2MW floating solar and 19.6MWh battery energy storage system in Changbin Industrial Area, Changhua, via CTBC Bank, E Sun Commercial Bank, KGI Bank, MUFG, SMBC and Standard Chartered. Legal advisers are Linklaters, Tsar & Tsai Law Firm, and Lee & Li. Financial close and start of the construction is believed to have happened last week.

Almar Water Solutions is said to be pursuing a US$1bn-plus project finance deal backing a water conveyance project in Chile. The company, part of Abdul Latif Jameel Energy, is talking with lenders in New York about the deal, according to sources. The company previously signed agreements with Mantos Copper to provide water for its Mantos Blancos mine in Antofagasta. Mantos Copper was established in September 2015 by Audley Mining Advisors and Orion Mine Finance when they acquired the Anglo American Norte copper division, which included the...

Pilbara Minerals and Ganfeng Lithium Group have jointly agreed to undertake a feasibility study for a downstream lithium chemicals conversion plant and potential production of an intermediate lithium chemicals product. They will consider a list of countries, including Australia, for the conversion plant’s location, while the study will assess producing the intermediate lithium chemicals product in Australia to reduce transportation. The feasibility study is due for completion in Q1 2025. Ganfeng will have the option after the study to become...

MPower, the power supply arm of Manila Electric Co (Meralco), will be working with two American firms to support the government’s net-zero emission targets. Maryland-based hydrogen production startup Ally Power and MPower will develop a hydrogen and electric refueling station in the country, estimated to cost US$400m. “This station will produce hydrogen, electricity, and sodium aluminate to support the Philippines’ energy security and climate change agenda,” the United States Department of Commerce said in a statement. Ally Power is engaged...

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has revealed 4m smart meters out of the 34.8m installed in the UK are operating in a non-smart mode at year-end, up from 2.7m out of 33m installed by the end of June. A total of 3.5m smart meters were installed in 2023, a 6% decrease on 2022. Trade association Energy UK said suppliers are obliged to replace faulty meters.

Enel is selling a portfolio of 780MW of operating solar assets and a 1.3GWh storage project pipeline, according to reports, 40% of its solar portfolio in the country. Last year the company sold its 416MW Arcadia Generacion Solar portfolio to Sonnedix for US$550m, a multiple of US$1.3m/MW. Sonnedix backed the deal a US$624m acquisition facility led by BNP Paribas, SMBC and Societe Generale. Credit Agricole was the senior mandated lead arranger and DNB Bank was an arranger. The Sonnedix loan was backed by assets it already owned in the country ...

JERA Scarborough, the Australian unit of JERA, has signed a US$1.23bn loan to back its purchase of a stake in the Scarborough gas field project in Western Australia, reports LPC. Japan Bank for International Cooperation is funding US$831m, while other unidentified financial institutions are providing the remainder, JBIC said. Last month, JERA, a joint venture between Tokyo Electric Power and Chubu Electric Power, said it had agreed to buy a 15.1% stake in the project from Australia’s Woodside Energy for about US$1.4bn.

Belgian retailer Colruyt is selling 30% of its stake in energy company Virya Energy to its majority shareholder Korys based on an equity value of €600m (US$650.64m), Colruyt said in a statement, adding it would book a cash inflow of about €180m in its 2023/24 financial year. Virya – founded by Colruyt and Korys in 2019 – is active in developing, constructing and operating renewable energy infrastructure with a focus on onshore wind. "Virya Energy's ambition is to continue to invest in other technologies beyond onshore wind energy, such as solar...

Woodside has completed the sale of a 10% stake in the US$5.7bn upstream Scarborough gas project offshore Western Australia to LNG Japan's LJ Scarborough for US$910m. JOGMEC has joined the LNG Japan team on this deal by taking a 49% stake in LJ Scarborough. Sumitomo and Sojitz own the rest. JERA is buying a further 15.1% stake in the scheme backed by a JBIC loan. Woodside will then hold 74.9% of the Scarborough joint venture.

Indian Oil Corp has launched a tender to build, own and operate a 10,000 tonnes per annum green hydrogen production facility at the Panipat refinery in Haryana. Bids are due by April 22. The project would require commissioning within 30 months of the letter of award. Indian Oil Corp is owned by the Indian government.

Indian central government power company NTPC has awarded 1.5GW of wind-solar hybrid capacity in the Tranche-IV tender, reports Mercom India. Axis Energy’s ABC Cleantech won 750MW at Rs3.27 per kWh (US$0.039/kWh) and Juniper Green Energy won 300MW at Rs3.29/kWh. Acme Group won 150MW and ReNew won 300MW, both at Rs3.32/kWh. NTPC launched the tender in December. Projects must connect to the interstate transmission system grid. NTPC has launched a tender for 1GW of wind-solar hybrids with a deadline of April 16.

A majority stake in Ayana Renewable Power is up for sale with Gentari, Masdar, Sembcorp, PSP and Brookfield interested, reports Economic Times. Indian government-backed National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, the UK government’s British International Investment and Eversource-managed Green Growth Equity Fund own the company. Eversource is a joint venture between Lightsource BP and Everstone Group. The stake in Ayana could be valued at US$1bn giving an enterprise value including debt of US$2.5bn–$3bn, according to the report. First bids are...

Solar Energy Corp of India has awarded 480MW in the firm and dispatchable renewable energy Tranche II tender, reports Mercom India. Hero Future Energies won 120MW at Rs5.59 per kWh (US$0.067/kWh) while JSW Neo Energy won 180MW, Serentica Renewables won 100MW and ReNew won 80MW, all at Rs5.60/kWh. Only 480MW of the 1.5GW tender was auctioned, Mercom reports. The winners will develop projects connected to the interstate transmission system, with SECI selling the energy to distribution companies in Punjab and Madhya Pradesh. Projects must...

JSW Neo Energy has agreed to buy the 45MW Vashpet wind farm from Reliance Power for Rs1.32bn (US$16m). The operational asset is in Jath in Maharashtra. JSW is targeting renewable-led capacity growth of 20GW by 2030. The purchase requires regulatory approval. JSW Energy has 7.2GW of capacity in operation and 2.6GW in construction in wind, solar, thermal and hydro. JSW Neo Energy this month won 700MW solar capacity in Solar Energy Corporation of India’s 1.5GW inter-state transmission system-connected solar Tranche-XIII auction. JSW was awarded in...

Natixis has financed ZEN Energy's 111MW/291MWh Templers Battery Energy Storage System in South Australia as sole mandated lead arranger, underwriter and bookrunner. The debt comprises a A$142m (US$93m) five-year term loan, provided by MLA Natixis and Bank of China as participant, and ancillary facilities of A$9m and A$16.5m, for a total debt size of A$167.5m, LPC data show. Bank of China was agent and security trustee. Australian retailer ZEN Energy has been developing the project after buying it from RES. US infrastructure fund manager...

Ardian has agreed to acquire CampusParc, the owner of the parking concession at Ohio State University, for US$850m, Bloomberg reported, citing people with knowledge of the matter. The purchase price includes the assumption of debt, according to the report. CampusParc is owned by QIC and Australian Retirement Trust. In 2012, QIC paid Ohio State University US$483m for a 50-year concession. QIC is separately exploring a sale of MasParc, a parking concession at Boston’s Northeastern University, according to the report.

Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone has agreed to buy 95% of the equity in Gopalpur Port on India’s east coast at an enterprise valuation of Rs30.8bn (US$369m) from Shapoorji Pallonji Group and Orissa Stevedores. The equity valuation for the 95% is Rs13.49bn. An additional deferred contingent payment of Rs2.7bn is due after 5.5-years if certain conditions are met. Gopalpur Port, operated under concession, handles dry bulk and break bulk cargoes, with an estimated 11.3m metric tonnes cargo throughput in fiscal 2024 ending March 31, and a...

NextDecade has closed a US$190m private placement of notes to finance a portion of Phase 1 of the Rio Grande project LNG export project in Brownsville, Texas. The company said in a business update it remains focused on reaching final investment decision for Train 4 in the second half of this year. The bonds reduced commitments outstanding under Rio Grande's existing bank credit facilities for Phase 1. They will be amortised over a period of approximately 18 years beginning in mid-2029, with a final maturity in June 2047. The senior secured...

Metis Energy has achieved financial close on the 111MW Gunsynd solar farm in Goondiwindi, Queensland, with green loan debt from DBS, SMBC and Siemens Bank. The loan is sized at A$111m (US$73m) with a five-year tenor. The project is Metis’ first in Australia, after the Singapore Exchange-listed company acquired it in late 2022 from SkyLab Energy. PCL Solar, the engineering, procurement and construction contractor, has received notice to proceed. DBS was financial adviser and green loan coordinator with SMBC. Baker McKenzie was the sponsor’s...

EnCap Energy Transition Fund (ETF) is launching Bildmore, a platform focused on investing in passive minority equity positions in third-party battery storage, solar, and other energy transition projects. Bildmore expects to make 10 to 15 minority investments annually, initially focused on utility-scale projects and sponsors who "cannot meet the traditionally narrowed requirements for tax equity but want to improve their economics beyond only transferring tax credits at a discount". ETF previously invested in utility-scale battery storage with...

SJVN Green Energy has won the bid to develop a 200MW solar project bid out by Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam via a tariff of Rs2.66 per kWh (US$0.032/kWh) on build, own and operate basis. The project at the Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Solar Park at Khavda is estimated to cost Rs1.1bn (US$132.3m) and is targeted to be commissioned 18 months from the date of signing the power purchase agreement. SJVN is owned by the Indian government and the Himachal Pradesh state government.

The US Department of Transportation Build America Bureau has released a notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for the innovative finance and asset concession programme, authorised by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The programme makes US$100m available over five years to assist public entities in facilitating and evaluating public-private partnerships and exploring innovative financing and delivery opportunities for projects which are also eligible for Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act financing. The NOFO allocates...

Invenergy has closed on a total of four financing transactions totalling 677MW to back its renewable power projects in Kansas and Texas. The schemes are; Diversion, a 200MW wind project in Baylor and Wilbarger Counties, Texas; Flat Ridge IV, a 135MW wind project in Harper and Kingsman Counties, Kansas; Flat Ridge V, a 153MW wind project in Harper and Kingsman Counties, Kansas; and Pixley, a 189MW solar project in Barber County, Kansas. Natixis acted as joint lead arranger, co-green loan coordinator and joint bookrunner and was the sole...

Tango Energy is looking to invest US$1.1bn in a solar and hydrogen hub in the state of Sonora, according to local press reports. The company intends to build a 921MW Tango Solar Norte photovoltaic project and associated H2 production plant in El Fuerte municipality. The project will allow the electrolysis of 663,759m3 of water for the generation of 41,485 tonnes per annum of green hydrogen. Tango Energy is backed by Spanish company DH2 Energy, which was founded in 2018 by industry veterans Philippe Esposito and Olivier Crambade. The company...

The Ohio Power Siting Board has voted to approve a US$1bn solar and storage project being developed by Shell’s US solar business Savion. The Oak Run project will be developed on land partially owned by Bill Gates in Madison County and will extend through the Monroe, Somerford and Deercreek townships on 6,050 acres of farmland near Columbus. It will include 800MW of solar, 300MW of battery storage and two 3.5-mile transmission lines. It is also expected to be the largest demonstration of agrivoltaics in the US, combining farming and solar...

Denver, Colorado-based data centre developer Stack Infrastructure has closed on a US$240m unregistered offering of green securitised notes. The notes were offered at the lowest blended spread over the Treasury rate of any data centre issuer since October 2021, according to Stack. The bond issue represents the fourth securitisation for Stack over the past 12 months and the eighth since 2019. The company has raised a total of US$2.8bn in notes, rated A– by S&P, via its master trust programme.

Colorado-based data centre operator EdgeCore Digital Infrastructure has closed a US$440m limited recourse debt financing to fund development of its Silicon Valley campus in Santa Clara. Coordinating lead arrangers and bookrunners on the green loan transaction were MUFG, ING and First Citizens Bank & Trust. ING was green loan structuring agent. Davis Polk Watson was sponsor's counsel and Milbank was lenders' counsel. EdgeCore broke ground on the data centre project in January 2023. At full buildout it will support 72MW of critical load across...

Blackstone has provided US$600m of senior secured credit to support the development of Texas-based Aligned Data Centers' largest facility in West Jordan, Utah. The credit line is committed entirely by insurance accounts managed by Blackstone Credit & Insurance infrastructure and asset-based credit group. Aligned’s SLC-03 data centre is a two-storey 80MW build-to-suit project on a hyperscale campus which has three facilities. It is the company’s fourth hyperscale data centre in the Salt Lake City metro area.

French investment firm Ardian has partnered with French parking and mobility company Indigo Group to form Clermont, a joint venture to invest in Canadian parking assets. Indigo will contribute its Canadian-owned properties to Clermont while retaining operations responsibility for the properties through Indigo Park Canada. Ardian will support Clermont’s digitisation and sustainability efforts. Both companies will deploy additional equity over the long term to acquire parking assets and long-term concessions and leases. Indigo will manage the...

Houston-based oil and gas refinery operator Par Pacific has amended its asset-based revolving credit facility, increasing it to US$1.4bn from US$900m. The move is conditioned upon the termination of the company’s existing intermediation agreement, which is expected to occur on or about May 31 2024. The increase is based, in part, on the addition of certain assets in Hawaii, including refined product inventory and accounts receivable. The company is in the market for a US$546m term loan B to reprice its existing loan. Lender calls were to...

Florianopolis-based solar developer AXS Energia has closed a US$54m senior debt facility backing construction of 14 ground-mounted solar projects totalling 39.7MW in Brazil. CIFI Services is lead arranger for the financing. Triodos Emerging Markets Renewable Energy Fund and Triodos Groenfonds provided US$5m to the deal, they said. It is their first transaction in Brazil. The projects are all under construction with commercial operation expected in Q2. The energy generated by the 14 solar projects will be directly injected into the grid near the...

Summit Midstream Partners has sold its Summit Midstream Utica affiliate to MPLX for US$625m in cash. The sold entity includes its approximately 36% interest in Ohio Gathering Company, approximately 38% interest in Ohio Condensate Company, collectively known as Ohio Gathering, and wholly owned Utica assets. RBC Capital Markets served as financial adviser for the Utica transaction and Locke Lord served as legal adviser to Summit. Summit is a limited partnership focused on developing, owning, and operating midstream energy infrastructure assets,...

The Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office has made a conditional commitment for a partial loan guarantee sized at an up to US$72.8m to finance the development of a 60MWh solar-plus-long duration energy storage microgrid on the Tribal lands of the Viejas Band of the Kumeyaay Native Americans near Alpine, California. The project is the first to be offered a conditional commitment through the Tribal Energy Financing Program which was expanded and provided new loan authority by the Inflation Reduction Act. The project company is owned by...

Maryland-based biomass developer and wood pellet manufacturer Enviva has filed for Chapter 11 under a pre-arranged restructuring with lenders. The company suspended development of its US$250m project in Bond, Mississippi, that was to produce more than 1m tonnes of wood pellets per year. The company has entered two restructuring support agreements: one with lenders representing approximately 72% of its senior secured credit facility, 95% of its 2026 senior notes, 78% of bonds related to its Epes, Alabama, plant which is under construction and 45...

The 50:50 joint venture between Spanish construction company Grupo Ortiz and local builder KMA Construcciones will sign this month the dual-currency US$630m mini-perm project financing for the US$1bn Troncal del Magdalena 1, Puerto Salgar-Barrancabermeja 5G, highway concession. The eight-year mini-perm loan is in pesos and US dollars, which will be refinanced once the project is close to entering operation. The International Finance Corporation will provide a peso-linked US$150m-equivalent A loan, approved this month. IDB Invest will lend up to...

The Department of Energy has selected 52 projects across 24 states to share US$750m in funding for projects that will advance electrolysis technologies and improve manufacturing and recycling capabilities for clean hydrogen systems and components. The awards represent the first phase of implementation of two provisions of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which authorises US$1bn for research, development, demonstration, and deployment activities to reduce the cost of clean hydrogen produced by electrolysis and US$500m for research, development...

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is to initiate an environmental review of Vineyard Northeast’s proposed 2.6GW offshore wind energy off the coast of Nantucket. It has published a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement for the construction and operations plan submitted by Vineyard Northeast. The Vineyard Northeast Wind project includes 160 turbines within the 132,370-acre OCS-A 0522 lease area 29 miles offshore. The company is backed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and Avangrid. Since the start of the Biden...

The city of Manhattan Beach, California has issued a request for proposals seeking an adviser on a potential public-private partnership for its parking system. The city operates 14 public off-street parking facilities totalling more than 1,500 spaces with metered, reserved, EV charging and permitted spaces, as well as over 500 street parking meters in five separate commercial areas. The five commercial areas to be studied include downtown Manhattan Beach, North End Business District, Sepulveda Boulevard Corridor, Parkview Avenue and the east...

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro has announced a plan to incentivise clean energy projects and boost the state from 45th place in the nation in terms of investment in projects like wind, solar and hydropower. The Pennsylvania Reliable Energy Sustainability Standard is designed to attract federal investments, create jobs, and lower consumer electric bills. It requires Pennsylvania to get 50% of its electricity from a range of energy resources by 2035, including 35% from solar, wind, small modular reactors and fusion; 10% from emerging sources...

Venture Global LNG is “deeply disappointed” the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission excluded consideration of its US$10bn CP2 LNG project in Louisiana on the agenda for its March 21 meeting, the company said in a statement on social media. “It has been eight months since FERC issued a final environmental impact statement for CP2, making it one of the longest to ever sit before the commission,” Venture Global said. “We remain confident that we have met or exceeded all regulatory requirements that are necessary to move forward with the project....

Oil company Ecopetrol has received approval from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit for a US$1.2bn five-year term loan. Funds will be used to refinance an US$1.2bn outstanding term loan that was disbursed on September 29 2022. That loan was used to refinance debt associated with the acquisition of electricity transmission company Interconexion Electrica. Lenders to the new loan are Bank of Nova Scotia (US$300m), BBVA (US$250m), Bank of America (US$200m), JP Morgan (US$200m), Itau Chile (US$100m), and Standard Chartered (US$150m)....

Brookfield Infrastructure-backed natural gas company NorthRiver Midstream has finalised terms for the repricing of its existing US845.75m senior secured term loan B due in August 2030. Pricing settled at 250bp over SOFR, from guidance of 250bp–275bp over SOFR, with a 0% floor. The covenant-lite loan came in at 99.75 cents on the dollar, after being guided at par. Existing corporate and facility ratings are Ba3/BB. BMO is lead-left arranger. RBC is also an arranger. According to a February 9 S&P Global Ratings report, it is expected that...

Spanish IPP Solarpack has closed a US$176.6m senior green project finance package backing the 300MW San Martin solar farm in Arequipa via BBVA, Credit Agricole, BNP Paribas, and Natixis. The deal includes an additional US$19m revolving credit facility from BBVA to cover working capital and general sales taxes generated during construction. Milbank, Garrigues, Mott MacDonald, Willis Towers Watson, Grupo Mercados Energeticos Consultores, and EY advised lenders. Clifford Chance and Rodrigo Elias & Medrano advised Solarpack. It marks the first...

Atlas Renewable Energy has signed a 15-year power purchase agreement with local company COPEC for output from its 200MW/800MWh BESS del Desierto battery scheme in Antofagasta, which will sell the power through its commercial company EMOAC. The four-hour battery system will be installed next to Atlas’s Sol del Desierto solar project. Atlas has now signed contracts for upwards of 5.2GW. The BESS del Desierto PPA will be among the largest storage contracts in Chile.

The country's lower house of government has approved a bill that creates the Energy Transition Acceleration Programme, Paten. The bill now goes to the Senate. The proposal includes creation of a BNDES-backed green fund. The money will be used to finance sustainability projects as an alternative to subsidies and tax incentives. Projects include renewables farms and low-carbon fuels production sites including for ethanol, biodiesel, and biomethane. Brazil invested R$34.8bn (US$6.9bn) in energy transition in 2023 across renewable energy, carbon...

BluPine Energy has reached financial close on a Rs12.6bn (US$152m) green loan for a 198MW wind project in Gujarat via underwriters Standard Chartered and Tata Capital on the green loan which matures in December 2038. The wind farm has a 25-year power purchase agreement with Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam for 198MW at a tariff of Rs3.05 per kWh, won in 2022 in the Phase-III wind auction of GUVNL. BluPine chief executive Neerav Nanavaty said: “With the addition of this project, BluPine Energy’s cumulative solar and wind energy capacity in Gujarat will...

KKR and EIG are planning to invest at least US$1bn into renewables developer Avantus, formerly 8minute Energy, Bloomberg reported. KKR will become the majority owner of Avantus. KKR and existing Avantus investor EIG will be the sole equity investors and will help finance projects, according to the report. The deal includes equity and debt financing, the report said, including from third parties, but further financial terms were not revealed. Avantus has a project development pipeline that includes 30GW of solar and 94GWh of storage. The company...

Natural gas and oil company Crescent Energy has priced a US$700m 144A/Reg S senior unsecured bond to refinance debt at 7.625%. The eight-year NC3 note sold at 100 to yield 7.625% as well. Bank of America, JP Morgan, KKR, RBC, Wells Fargo, Capital One, Fifth Third, KeyBanc, Mizuho, and Truist are joint bookrunners. The deal prompted a tender offer for the company’s 7.250% senior notes due 2026. The company is active in the acquisition, development, and operation of oil and natural gas properties in the Eagle Ford and Uinta Basins.

Australian investment and advisory firm Energy Estate has launched a global sustainable aviation fuels platform E2SAF, with a portfolio of SAF projects in planning. The platform will initially be focused on Australia and the US, with a longer-term pipeline in Europe and New Zealand, according to Energy Estate principal Simon Currie. Energy Estate director Peter Conway, based in London, is heading the platform E2SAF. Conway said SAF projects are already identified in Texas, California, Queensland and New South Wales across the Fischer Tropsch...

The Ministry of Transport & Communications and private investment promotion agency ProInversion have signed an agreement for the study and promotion of a new phase of the Red Dorsal Nacional de Fibra Optica broadband public-private partnership. The aim of the fibre optic buildout is to bring highspeed internet to 80 provincial capitals and 1,500 districts across Peru, closing the digital divide. A previous iteration of the RDNFO in 2014 saw Mexican giant Azteca win a 20-year concession and invest US$333m. Following the studies, ProInversion...

Nebraska is planning initiatives to boost renewables construction in the state. The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy submitted the state’s Priority Climate Action Plan to the Environmental Protection Agency earlier this month, seeking approval to offer US$4.6bn in grants to incentivise developers to build projects that include energy, efficiency, weatherisation and agriculture. The grants will support plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, part of which will include adding renewables projects. The state is aiming to fund solar...

Horizonte Minerals’ affiliate Araguaia Niquel Metais has been granted an injunction giving it a 60-day stay period to work on a restructuring plan to be approved by its creditors. The entity is developing the Araguaia nickel project which has been slammed an increase in costs to over US$1bn, up from US$537m. The company continues to put a financing package together backing the extra costs of the scheme. Horizonte’s market cap plummeted some 60% on the news to less than £10m, down drastically from the £400m mark around six months ago. Over the...