Parkwind has announced that the 257MW Arcadis Ost 1 offshore wind farm in Germany has reached financial close.
The project raised about €570m of debt from a group of nine lenders.
They were KBC Bank, Belfius Bank, Helaba, KfW IPEX-Bank, Coöperatieve Rabobank, Société Générale, ING Bank, EKF Danmarks Eksportkredit and the European Investment Bank.
Parkwind will now launch construction of its first German project, setting new standards with innovative installation methods.
The wind farm will be located in the German territorial waters of the Baltic Sea, northeast of the island of Rügen.
It will generate green energy to power the equivalent of up to 290,000 households as of 2023.
After being successful in the 2018 auction, the project was awarded a market premium and recently obtained its permit in March 2021.
Offshore installation works are due to begin in 2022 and the wind farm is expected to be fully operational in 2023.
Parkwind head of corporate finance Ralf Bauer said: “Finalizing the development of the project and reaching financial close has shown the dedication, professionalism and resilience of the whole Parkwind team and its advisors.
“We are proud to see this reflected in the confidence of the financial markets.”
Arcadis Ost 1 project director Clément Helbig de Balzac added: “After three years of intense development works, the Parkwind team can be proud of securing the financial close of Arcadis Ost 1.
“With the group of world class contractors that we have formed, the support of the local authorities and now, our lenders, Arcadis Ost 1 can begin its execution phase and will ultimately become an integrated part of Germany’s energy transition.”
Minister for Energy and Infrastructure of the state of Mecklenburg- Vorpommern Christian Pegel said: “Since the approval of the first offshore wind farm in the German Baltic Sea in 2011, offshore wind has not only contributed to the energy transition, but also to an enormous economic development in our region.
“With Arcadis Ost 1, now the fourth offshore wind farm off the coast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, we are continuing this success story.
“In the future, we want to use offshore wind to generate climate-neutral hydrogen, making our region even more attractive for new businesses.”