Offshore wind developer wpd group has confirmed the closing of the syndication for its EUR 2.5 billion Yunlin offshore wind financing in Taiwan.
The 640MW Yunlin offshore wind farm project, the largest offshore wind transaction financed in the Asia Pacific, reached financial close on 30 May.
“wpd is very happy about the successful closing of the syndication on time which reflects increasing interest by Taiwanese banks,” Bjoern Nullmeyer, CFO of wpd AG, said.
”Both private and state-owned banks are participating as new lenders. Besides this, a growing number of unfunded risk participants are supporting project finance for offshore wind farms.”
The initially mandated lead arrangers and underwriters, Taipei Fubon Commercial Bank, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, Deutsche Bank, Mizuho Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, were heading the syndication for Yunlin.
The Yunlin project is 73% owned by wpd and 27% owned by a Sojitz Corp-led consortium which includes Chugoku Electric Power Co. Inc., Chudenko Corporation, Shikoku Electric Power Co., Inc., and JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation.
The Yunlin wind farm will be built eight kilometers off the Taiwanese west coast and will consist of 80 Siemens Gamesa turbines of the 8MW class.
wpd has also been awarded the 350MW Guanyin offshore wind project in Taipei and has already started the financing process. Interested parties on the debt and equity side have been approached with a solid project structure, the company said.
The Guanyin offshore wind farm project is planned two kilometers off the coast of the Taoyuan district in the north of the island state, with commissioning planned for 2021/2022.
The two projects will require a total debt financing of more than EUR 4 billion, wpd said.