PR85360

DUBLIN, September 1, 2020, /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/--

- US$620m secured from a consortium of five banks for 630 MW of wind and solar assets

- One of the largest renewable energy debt financing deals undertaken in the

world this year

- Deal underlines Mainstream's commitment to renewable power build-out in Chile

and its track record in delivering gigawatt-scale renewable energy platforms

- Full 1.3 GW Andes Renovables platform continues to make excellent progress

despite COVID-19 impact due to strict internal safety protocols

Global wind and solar development company, Mainstream Renewable Power

("Mainstream" or "The Company"), has reached financial close for the second

phase of its wholly-owned and fully-contracted 1.3 gigawatt "Andes Renovables"

wind and solar power generation platform in Chile.

The Company has successfully raised US$620 million in debt to fund construction

of phase two of what is one of Latin American's biggest wind and solar

generation platforms. This brings to US$1.25bn raised to date by the Andes

Renovables platform.

The Senior financing has been provided by a consortium of five banks: IDB

Invest, KfW IPEX-Bank, DNB,  CaixaBank and MUFG, and is one of the largest

renewable energy debt financing deals undertaken in the world this year. A

sixth bank, Santander, provided a VAT facility.

The 630 megawatt (MW) second phase of Andes Renovables – called "Huemul" – is

comprised of three onshore wind and two solar PV generation assets. All five

assets are in pre-construction and will reach commercial operation between 2021

and 2022. They will generate enough sustainable electricity to power 781,000

Chilean homes and will displace 744,200 metric tonnes of CO2 each year.

Andes Renovables is a c.US$1.8 billion, three phase wind and solar generation

platform comprised of seven onshore wind and three solar PV generation assets.

The first phase, Cóndor reached financial close in November 2019 and is already

over 30% complete. The build-out has created nearly 1,200 jobs across three

regions of the country and has safely continued throughout the COVID-19

pandemic under strict sanitary and social distancing protocols. The next and

final phase, "Copihue", is comprised of one further wind asset with a 100 MW

capacity and is on track to reach financial close in H1 2021.

Vestas, Nordex Group and Siemens Gamesa are supplying the wind turbines and the

wind farm assets will be built by Sacyr Industrial, SEMI and Elecnor. The solar

PV assets will be built by Sterling & Wilson and Metka-Egn. All five main power

transformers for the projects will be supplied by Hitachi ABB Power Grids. Grid

connection works will be carried out by Transelec, Inprolec and Isotron-Siemens

consortium.

Mary Quaney, Mainstream's Group Chief Executive said:

"Reaching financial close on the second phase of our Andes Renovables platform

is a further positive step on Mainstream's journey to delivering Latin

America's number one wind and solar PV power generation platform.

"Despite the uncertain economic environment caused by COVID-19, today's

announcement is testament to the support of the banking consortium of

Mainstream as the world's leading independent developer of renewable energy.

"Mainstream is building something much bigger than the sum of its many parts –

the Andes Renovables platform is evidence of renewable energy infrastructure on

a massive scale and comes at a vital time for Chile as the country looks to

invest in a green and sustainable recovery from COVID-19 by decarbonising its

electricity system, as well as lowering the price of power generation nationwide."

Manuel Tagle, Mainstream's General Manager for Latin America said:

"This latest milestone comes as we are making excellent progress on the

construction of the first phase of the platform and I have been delighted by

the response of our teams on the ground to the challenging conditions that the

pandemic has created.

"The economic and environmental impact of the platform is very significant and

with a development pipeline of 2.7 gigawatts of wind and solar assets in

addition to the Andes Renovables platform, Mainstream remains committed to

making an even greater contribution to Chile for the foreseeable future."

Notes to Editors:

About Mainstream Renewable Power in Chile

In 2016, Mainstream was the biggest winner in Chile's largest ever

technology-neutral electricity auction, taking 27% of the total allocated

capacity. Chile's National Energy Commission awarded Mainstream a 20-year

index-linked, US dollar denominated contract, to supply 3,366 Gigawatt Hours of

firm power starting in 2021. Mainstream has also delivered an additional 332 MW

of wind generation in Chile via the Aela Platform with its joint venture

partner Actis, delivering its first wind farm into commercial operation in

2014. Mainstream has an additional 2,700 MW of wind and solar PV generation

assets under development in Chile.

Detailed Project information

                                   Andes Renovables Platform

Phase        Name        MW onshore wind              MW Solar PV        Commercial Operation

1                Condor      3 assets (426MW)               1 asset (145MW)          2021

2                Huemul     3 assets (425 MW)              2 assets (205 MW)        2021 - 2022

3                Copihue     1 asset (100 MW)                n/a                                 2022

                                     951 MW (onshore wind)    350 MW (solar PV)        

                                    Phase two – Huemul assets

Asset                                               MW        Region       Commercial

Equipment      Construction

Name               Technology           capacity                        Operation  

supplier            contractor

Puelche Sur   Onshore Wind             156      Los Lagos    2022          Nordex Group         SEMI

Llanos

del Viento       Onshore Wind            160      Antofagasta  2022          Siemens Gamesa  Elecnor

Ckani              Onshore Wind            109      Antofagasta  2022          Vestas                    Sacyr

Industrial

Pampa Tigre    Solar PV                   100       Antofagasta  2021          Full EPC contract

                                                                                                              Metka-Egn

Valle                Escondido Solar PV  105       Atacama        2021         Full EPC contract

Sterling & Wilson

TOTAL                                               630         

Contact:

Emmet Curley, Head of Communications & Positioning

Phone: +353 86 2411 690

Email: emmet.curley@mainstreamrp.com  

About Mainstream Renewable Power

Mainstream Renewable Power is the world's only independent developer of

utility-scale wind and solar power assets with a global footprint. The company

is focused on delivering a high-quality portfolio of more than 9 GW of wind and

solar assets across Latin America, Africa, Asia Pacific as well as the Offshore

wind sector globally.

Mainstream has delivered more than 1.1 GW of wind and solar assets into

commercial operation and is currently constructing a further 1.9 GW across

Latin America and Africa.

In Chile, Mainstream's wholly-owned 1.3 GW of fully contracted wind and solar

assets are on track to reach commercial operation from 2021. In Africa, the

company has delivered 600 MW of wind and solar assets into commercial operation

in South Africa and currently has 250 MW of wind assets in construction there.

Through its Lekela Power joint venture in Africa, it has 410 MW of wind assets

in construction in Senegal and Egypt.

Mainstream is the most successful independent developer of offshore wind at

scale globally.  It has successfully consented Hornsea One (1.2 GW), the

largest operational offshore wind plant in the world today; and developed the

Hornsea 2 project (1.4 GW)  before selling these projects and the entire Zone

in 2015.  Mainstream fully consented the Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind project

in Scotland, 450 MW, currently under construction.  

Mainstream's Soc Trang 800MW offshore wind development in Vietnam is one of

South East Asia's largest renewable energy developments. The Company signed an

agreement with Eni, the global energy company, to collaborate on potential

renewable energy developments across Africa and Southeast Asia, with an initial

focus on the UK's offshore Round 4.  

Mainstream has raised more than EUR3.0bn in project finance to date and employs

more than 300 staff across five continents.

www.mainstreamrp.com

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SOURCE: Mainstream Renewable Power