Norton Rose advises Natixis, Rabobank and Siemens Bank on financing of three photovoltaïc solar farms
27 January 2012
Norton Rose advises Natixis, Rabobank and Siemens Bank on the project financing of three photovoltaïc solar farms in France operated by Solairedirect
International legal practice Norton Rose LLP has advised Natixis as arranger and lender, together with Rabobank and Siemens Bank as additional original lenders, on the project financing of the construction, operation and maintenance of three ground-based photovoltaic solar plants with an estimated capacity of 34 MWc. The project portfolio is held jointly by Ampère Equity Fund (Banque Triodos) and Solairedirect.
The photovoltaïc plants, developed by Solairedirect, are located in the regions of Auvergne (Jussac and Couteuges) and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (Figanières), France.
They benefit from the exceptions to the moratorium on photovoltaic projects resulting from the Decree of 9th December 2010, and the electricity produced with be sold to EDF under the obligatory green electricity purchasing programme.
Natixis, Solairedirect‘s preferred partner, which provided the funding of its first solar farm, acted as lead arranger and, together with Rabobank and Siemens Bank, provided financing of the new programme.
Solairedirect is the French leader in the sector of competitive solar electricity fully dedicated to photovoltaic projects.. Solairedirect develops ground installations and building-integrated installations.
The company, with an integrated model, provides the full range of operations for the production of optimal solar energy from design to installation, production and maintenance up to the sale of produced solar electricity.
The Norton Rose LLP team in Paris was led by banking partner Anne Lapierre, who specialises in the energy sector, with assistance from Véronique Bruel, Of Counsel, Marie Zelazko for financing aspects, and Maxime Lavayssière and Adèle Edet for project matters.
Since 2001, the Norton Rose LLP energy practice in Paris, led by Anne Lapierre and now consisting of ten lawyers, has been involved in a wide range of transactions resulting from the liberalisation of the electricity market and the development of renewables in France and more recently in Africa. The team, which includes experts in mergers and acquisitions and project financing, regularly advises the full range of participants in the sector on administrative and regulatory aspects of project development, acquisitions, transfers and project financing.
Autres conseils juridiques
The operation was managed internally by SolaireDirect’s teams under the guidance of Olivier Kodjo (General Counsel Corporate Finance) and Guillaume Brunet ( Head of Project Financing). Solairedirect was advised by Lazard.
Contacts:
France
Norton Rose LLP
Pilar Aldehuelo,
Tel: +33 (0)1 56 59 52 04
pilar.aldehuelo@nortonrose.com
Agence Keima
Alix Hériard Dubreuil
Tel + 33 (0)1 56 43 44 62
alix.heriard@keima.fr
Editors note
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