Virgin Money is providing £26m of long-term funding for a 45MW solar farm in Herefordshire in the UK.
The funds will support the development, construction and operation of the Larport solar farm, which has been developed by Conrad Energy.
The 77,000-panel array is on track for completion by engineering and construction contractor Ethical Power in the second quarter of this year.
Larport has been designed and developed in consultation with Herefordshire County Council and will include 40 hectares of native wildflower grassland to mitigate the impact to the local community and environment.
The energy generated by the Larport Solar Farm has been pre-sold under a 15-year contract to a major banking institution to help decarbonise their UK operations.
Larport is the largest solar farm in Virgin Money’s portfolio of environment-focused lending, and the third transaction the bank has funded with Conrad Energy.
The deal underlines Virgin Money’s commitment to grow its renewable energy lending book from its current level of £300m to £500m by 2025, and to reduce financed emissions by 50% by 2030.
Established in 2017, Conrad Energy has 63 operational sites in the UK generating in excess of approximately 800MW per year, with a further 16 under construction and a development pipeline of 2.4GW.
Conrad Energy CEO, Steven Hardman, said: “We have built a very successful relationship with Virgin Money on the basis of the total commitment we share to carbon net zero.
“Larport Solar Farm will be our flagship solar project, and we are delighted to have secured a long-term customer with the same credibility and integrity as Virgin Money in their support for this vital transition to renewable energy.”
Virgin Money Senior Director, Renewable Energy, Adam Heslop, said: “Conrad Energy has an excellent track record of developing, constructing and operating energy generation in the UK and we’re pleased to be supporting them with this Herefordshire project that will have a positive impact on society and the environment.
“Larport Solar Farm aligns closely with Virgin Money’s ESG priorities, supporting the UK’s transition to a low carbon future and towards net zero, adding a substantial new supply of renewable energy to the grid.”