Hogan Lovells announced today that it closed approximately $1 billion in project financing on behalf of NextEra Energy Resources subsidiary Genesis Solar for the development of a 250 MW utility-scale solar thermal electric generating facility.
The construction and term financing was secured with a multi-tranche capital markets offering and bank facility that is 80-percent guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under its Financial Institutions Partnership Program (FIPP) under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act, which was expanded by the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to cover commercially viable renewable technologies. The construction and term financing consists of $702 million of 144A-issued trust certificates purchased by Credit Suisse Securities, as initial purchaser, a $150 million bank term loan facility, and an $83 million project letter of credit facility. Proceeds from the DOE financing will be used primarily for the construction of the Genesis Solar facility in Riverside County, CA, which features parabolic trough solar thermal technology.
“Given the scale and complexity of this program, which brought together significant public and private financing components, closing the deal is a considerable achievement and an important step forward in the development of the Genesis Solar project,” said lead Hogan Lovells partner Edith Webster. “We assembled a skilled, interdisciplinary team from across multiple Hogan Lovells offices to advise NextEra on the financing for this landmark project.”
The Hogan Lovells Infrastructure and Project Finance practice team was led by partner Edith Webster (New York) and included partners Christine Pallares (New York), Mary Anne Sullivan (Washington, D.C.), Scott Lilienthal (Washington, D.C.), and John Lilyestrom (Washington, D.C). Construction and development matters relating to the Genesis Project were handled by partners Jorge Diaz-Silveira and Tom Woolsey (Miami). The team also included corporate and securities, FERC, tax, environmental, creditors’ rights, real estate, and energy lawyers.
