- The size of the programme is scaled to amount to around €100 million;
- Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC as loan arranger, coordinator and lenders’ agent structured the financing agreement. Bpifrance and the EIB are financial partners;
- Thanks to the competitive refinancing terms offered by the EIB and a portfolio effect, Neoen was able to take out the loan under very favorable terms;
- An initial drawing for the financing of four solar and wind power projects representing total capacity of 42 MW will be made in the very near future.
Neoen, French independent market leader in renewable energy generation and one of the fastest-growing operators in the world, has announced the signing of a new agreement for the senior debt financing of a portfolio of French solar and wind power projects
Led by a consortium of banks comprising Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC, Bpifrance and the EIB, this financing agreement was entered into under very competitive terms. In particular, Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC has enabled Neoen to benefit from its partnership agreement with the EIB, which in turn allows it to lower its borrowing cost. Neoen’s long-standing partners Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC and Bpifrance have also agreed to extend the maturity of the financial instruments proposed beyond the term of the power purchase agreements for the projects proposed.
Serge Stepanov, Chief Financial Officer at Neoen, comments: “Entering into this major new financing programme under very competitive terms once again highlights our agility in terms of financial engineering – which is a key factor in our business – as well as the critical mass now achieved by Neoen in France. Neoen currently has around 700 MW of wind and solar power projects in operation and under construction in France, as well as several hundred megawatts under development. In this context, it is fundamental for us to have financial partners alongside us who fully understand our needs and our growth model. I would like to thank Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC, Bpifrance and the EIB for putting their trust in us, which has enabled us to successfully finalize this very special new partnership.”
Amaury Schoenauer, head of structured financing at Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC, states: “Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC is very pleased to have provided Neoen with a multi-year financing programme for its investment needs in France. The originality of this financing lies in its ability to resolve the dual constraint currently facing French renewable energy companies of finding financing that fully suits the underlying projects combined with the relative industrialization of implementation processes. We firmly believe that the solution provided will allow Neoen to develop its pipeline of solar and wind power projects in France effectively and with peace of mind over the next few years. We are delighted that Bpifrance and, in future, the EIB, are also involved in this financing.”
Aurélien Banon, regional representative of the Paris regional office of Bpifrance, concludes: “Bpifrance is delighted to be involved once again in a large-scale Neoen project alongside Caisse d’Épargne CEPAC, acting as arranger, and the EIB. The programme has benefited from a high level of expertise to offer the most appropriate arrangement. It attests to Bpifrance’s interest in playing a role in the growth of leading renewable energy companies like Neoen in order to support the transition to new energy sources in France.