Leeward Renewable Energy has closed over $600m in financing for its Big Plain Solar Facility located in London, Ohio and its Oak Trail Solar Facility located near Moyock, North Carolina.
The company received approximately $420m in construction to term financing from MUFG Bank along with a $195m tax equity commitment from Wells Fargo.
The Big Plain and Oak Trail Solar facilities are currently under construction and, when completed, will provide a combined 296MW of renewable energy to Verizon Communications under a long-term power purchase agreement.
Both projects are expected to reach commercial operation by mid-2023.
MUFG served as the Green Loan Structuring Agent, Coordinating Lead Arranger and Administrative Agent for the construction to term financing, arranging financing commitments from eight financial institutions and Export Development Canada (EDC).
The debt was issued under the Green Loan Principles, which aim to facilitate and support environmentally sustainable economic activity.
“We are pleased to have secured financing for our Big Plain and Oak Trail projects, marking another significant milestone in the development of our solar energy portfolio,” commented Chris Loehr, Senior Vice-president of Finance.
“These agreements demonstrate the continued confidence financial institutions hold in our project portfolio and performance as we continue to execute on our contracted 2022-2023 pipeline. We appreciate the continued support from each of our participating financial institutions, particularly under terms that help advance and enhance LRE’s own environmental and social initiatives.”
Beth Waters, Managing Director of Project Finance at MUFG added: “MUFG is proud to have partnered with Leeward Renewable Energy on another important project. Supporting our clients in building sustainable and renewable energy sources is a crucial tenet of our business, and we look forward to working closely with Leeward on future projects.”