Merkur banks €1.6bn build cash

The DEME-led development consortium behind the 396MW Merkur offshore wind farm in the German North Sea has committed to building the project after reaching financial close.

The €1.6 billion wind farm will feature 66 GE Haliade 6MW turbines some 45km north of the island of Borkum.

It is being developed by Partners Group, InfraRed Capital Partners, DEME Concessions Wind, GE Energy Financial Services and L’Agence de l’environnement et de la maîtrise de l’énergie.

The developers stumped up almost €500m in equity funding for the project, according to a statement on Friday.

Construction is to kick off immediately, the statement added, with GeoSea on cue to begin the work.

A group of 10 international and local banks committed €1.2 billion of senior secured debt to the project. Financing was agreed within four months, the developers said.

The debt funding line-up features KfW Mittelstandsbank, ABN Amro, Commerzbank, Deutsche Bank, Natixis, Rabobank, SEB, SMBC and Société Générale.

Partners Group co-head of private infrastructure Brandon Prater said: “With several coal-fired and nuclear power plants due to be retired across Germany by 2020, Merkur is a timely project and will contribute towards maintaining the country’s energy supply, while catering to the long-term shift towards renewables in the power generation mix. 

“On this project we have strong and experienced equipment and engineering partners, as well as equity partners, and look forward to working with them to successfully complete Merkur.”

Image: GE 6MW turbines at the under-construction Block Island project in the US (Deepwater Wind)