Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, Deutsche Bank S.A. and Eksport Kredit Fonden (EKF), the Danish Export Credit Agency, in relation to the financing, construction and operation of a new 40MW biomass energy facility at Port Talbot, Wales. The capital cost of The Margam Green Energy Project is £140 million.
Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised ABN AMRO Bank NV (“ABN AMRO”) on a US$200 million one year bridge facility for DryShips Inc (“DryShips”), which was used to partially refinance a US$700 million bond issued by DryShips which matured on 1 December. The bridge facility is secured over shares held by DryShips in its subsidiary Ocean Rig UDW Inc. (“Ocean Rig”).
Limmel Lock PPP (public-private partnership) reached financial close. This is the first project to get underway for the Netherlands’ waterway locks PPP pipeline. A Clifford Chance project finance team from Amsterdam advised the winning consortium of BESIX, Rebel and Egemin.
King & Wood Mallesons has advised GCG Renewable Energy Infrastructure Fund GmbH & Co. KG (“REIF”), a fund advised by Munich-based Goodyields Capital GmbH, on a portfolio financing of onshore wind and solar PV assets, both existing and under construction, located in France, Italy and Sweden. The financing was granted by a German pension fund and was structured to best serve the interests of REIF’s institutional investors.
Ewz (Elektrizitätswerk der Stadt Zürich) and Aquila Capital have instructed Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) to advise on the acquisition financing of 29 wind energy plants from the listed Swedish wind farm developer, Eolus Vind AB.
ewz acquired, through German subsidiary ewz (Deutschland) GmbH, its first wind farm in Sweden and holds 51 percent of shares in the Swedish joint venture. Co-investor Aquila Capital, a leading alternative investment firm, holds the remaining 49 percent of shares in the joint venture for institutional investors.
DNB Bank ASA (“DNB”), in its capacity as agent for a syndicate of banks, instructed Watson Farley & Williams’ (“WFW”) Athens office on a term loan facility of up to US$120 million arranged by DNB, NIBC Bank N.V. (“NIBC”) and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (“SEB”), provided to Star Bulk Carriers (“Star Bulk”). The purpose of this facility was to assist Star Bulk in financing the acquisition of 12 vessels from Excel Maritime Carriers Ltd (“Excel Maritime”).
Ashurst advised the finance parties on the successful US$129 million financing of the Shams Ma'an PV solar power generating project in Jordan. The financing documents were signed in Amman on 18 January 2015 at a ceremony attended by the Jordanian and Japanese prime ministers, underscoring the importance of the project to Jordan's economy.
Shearman & Sterling advised the private equity arm of EFG Hermes, the leading investment bank in the Arab world, as sponsor on the financing and private equity aspects of the acquisition of 49% of EDP Renewables France and certain related inter-company debts.
EDP Renewables France is a subsidiary of EDPR (Energias de Portugal Renovaveis), one of the most prominent renewable energy leaders in the development, construction and operation of assets in their geographic areas. The company operates 33 wind farms in France with a total capacity of 334 megawatts.
Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised BNP Paribas has provided a term loan facility of US$55 million to subsidiaries of Diana Shipping Inc., to finance the acquisition cost of two Capesize bulk carriers named “G.P. ZAFIRAKIS” and “P.S. PALIOS”.
Shearman & Sterling advised Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden NV (FMO), the Dutch development finance institution, as arranger and a consortium of international and Nepalese lenders on the financing for the 82 MW Lower Solu run of the river hydropower project in the Solukhumbu district in Nepal.