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GE and UK Export Finance agree to support Turkish solar project
Biggest solar park in Germany without state funding inaugurated
GE and UK Export Finance (UKEF), UK’s export credit agency, have announced that an agreement has been reached to finance Kalyon Enerji’s 1.35 GW Karapinar solar project located in the Konya Karapinar province, Turkey. The solar power plant is the country’s largest solar facility, approximately 11 km long and 3 km wide, equivalent to over 4600 football pitches. GE Energy Financial Services worked with UKEF, who is set to guarantee a US$291 million (£217 million) Buyer Credit Facility, subject to financial close. This will enable GE to deploy its first FLEXINVERTER solar technology outside the US, supporting Turkey’s clean energy goals and facilitating trade for UK suppliers. Financing for the project will be structured on a project finance basis and raised through J.P. Morgan as acting lead arranger and lender supported by the UKEF guarantee. The integration of the FLEXINVERTER solar technology and the assembly of the solar power station will occur in the UK, supporting approximately 100 UK jobs directly and indirectly in the supply chain. As part of the localisation requirements, GE’s Grid Solutions site in Gebze, Turkey will be producing transformers for integration in the solar inverter system. In addition to GE’s solar technology, the export contract also covers design, engineering, project management, site management, and commissioning. GE Renewable Energy has already completed the commissioning of the FLEXINVERTER solar power station technology for Kalyon Enerji’s 267 MW Karapinar phase I solar plant. Upon full completion, expected by late 2022, the facility will deliver clean electricity to approximately 2 million Turkish households.
Almost one year ago, the first kWh flowed out of WeesowWillmersdorf and now the solar park has been formally inaugurated. With the construction of the solar park approximately 30 km east of Berlin, Germany, EnBW has opened a new chapter in the story of photovoltaics (PV) in Germany. Its 187 MW can supply up to 50 000 households each year with eco-friendly electricity. This is currently the biggest open-field solar power plant in Germany. Furthermore, EnBW built the solar park with no funding through the Renewable Energies Act (EEG). This is a new way of ramping up the use of solar energy in Germany, as EnBW board member Georg Stamatelopoulos explained at the official inauguration ceremony. “We must be faster and more digital in order to increase the pace of expansion for renewable energies. Processes must be streamlined and legally sound. The relevant authorities also need additional staff,” he said. Given the German government’s aim of raising the level of gross energy consumption met by renewable energies to 65% by 2030, there would have to be an annual increase in PV capacity of 10 000 MW – twice as high as the figure to date. Annual generation of approximately 180 million kWh of power will cut carbon emissions by approximately 129 000 tpy. EnBW itself has set a target of achieving net zero emissions by 2035. Between 2021 and 2025, the company invested approximately €4 billion in renewable energies. It is currently building another two major PV projects, each with a capacity of 150 MW, not far from Weesow-Willmersdorf solar park, thereby creating a unique solar cluster in Brandenburg made up of three large solar power plants.
MYTILINEOS announces financial close for Australian solar projects MYTILINEOS S.A. has reached financial close on the non-recourse financing of the Corowa, Junee, and Wagga solar farms in New South Wales, Australia, with lenders ANZ, Societe Generale, and Westpac. This 120 MWp portfolio (40 MWp each project) was acquired in 2019 as part of MYTILINEOS’ strategic entry to the Australian market, one of the most demanding and competitive markets in the world, where access to clean energy is still in demand for many large companies. These solar parks will produce 220 GWh/y to power Australia’s electricity system, reducing 180 000 tpy of
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carbon dioxide emissions. The majority of the power produced and the large scale generated certificates from the three projects are sold under a 10 year green Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Coles, a major Australian food and grocery retailer. Despite the adversities and difficulties imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, project construction was successfully executed by MYTILINEOS’ Renewables and Storage Development (RSD) Business Unit and was completed in 1H21, proving the company’s ability to carry out demanding projects.
