Enel has secured a facility totalling €600m from the European Investment Bank’s development branch EIB-Global backed by a guarantee from Italian financial insurance company Sace for green investments in Latin America.
Enel Green Power Peru has been granted $130m (€119m) through the facility to implement wind and solar projects totalling almost 300MW.
The remainder of the facility will support the growth of the Enel Group’s sustainable investments in Brazil and Colombia through renewable energy generation and power distribution projects.
The agreement represents EIB-Sace’s first sustainability-linked operation and the bank’s largest financing to a private sector entity outside Europe.
Projects financed with this facility are expected to generate around 2307 gigawatt-hours of clean energy each year, equivalent to the annual consumption of 1.32 million households.
The facility is linked to Enel’s ability to achieve its target for direct greenhouse gas emissions (scope one), measured in grams of CO2eq/kWh, equal to or below 148 gCO2eq/kWh by 2023.
Depending on the level of achievement of this target, the loan provides for a step-up/step-down mechanism that will trigger a margin adjustment.
EIB vice president Ricardo Mourinho Felix said: “This new agreement with Enel and Sace is a perfect illustration of how the EIB intends to work through EIB Global, where partnerships are central.
“It also shows our increased commitment to promoting sustainable and green investments in Brazil, Colombia, and Peru.
“At the EIB, we firmly believe that only by boosting the energy transition we can achieve the global climate goals while fueling economic growth and creating new employment opportunities.”
Enel chief financial officer Alberto De Paoli said: “Together with EIB and Sace, we are leading the transformation of international private and public finance towards a sustainability-linked approach.
“This evolution of sustainable finance will support long-term growth and a just transition, not only in Europe but also across Latin America, through a synergy between private and public players that aims to push sustainable development and accelerate the achievement of global sustainability goals, in line with the Paris Agreement and the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda.”
Sace chief underwriting officer Dario Liguti said: “We are proud to be part of this major project related to sustainable investments in Latin America with the collaboration of and in synergy with the European Investment Bank and Enel.
“Thanks to the experience and know-how of over 40 years, Sace contributes to the success of ‘Made in Italy’ in complex contexts, in which the role of risk mitigator and business facilitator is crucial.
“We truly believe that this operation will lead the way in increasing our collaboration with EIB, and in particular on sustainable finance.”