Power Capital Renewable Energy has closed a construction equity facility worth up to €240m with a consortium of lenders.
The facility, which comes with an initial tranche of €100m, will support the company’s plans to bring 1.2GW of solar projects to operation by 2025.
Part of the tranche will be used to build assets benefitting from signed power purchase agreements (PPAs) with Microsoft and another undisclosed technology company, with the remainder for assets having been awarded tariffs in the Irish RESS2 auction.
A further €100m may be made available through an additional portion to build more assets in Power Capital’s pipeline, while up to €40m may be made available for international expansion.
The lenders were managed by Eiffel Investment Group and include Belgian insurance company Ethias and the European Investment Bank (EIB).
Irish Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications Eamon Ryan said: “This new European support for 1.2GW of solar power investment across Ireland is a vote of confidence for Irish renewables.
“It will enable solar electricity to replace fossil fuel usage to power Ireland on sunny days and contribute to our target of up to 5GW of solar energy by 2025.”
Justin Brown and Peter Duff, Co-CEOs and Founders of Power Capital Renewable Energy, said: “It is fantastic to attract a club of such significant investors into the Irish solar sector.
“We have already commenced construction and expect 230MW to be completed by late this year across counties Cork, Wexford, Louth and Meath.
“Having the support from Eiffel Investment Group, EIB and Ethias will allow us to rapidly expand our construction roll out over the next years.”