After almost three years of developing the project, now the way is cleared for the construction of the Trianel Wind Farm Borkum (TWB). At the TWB general meeting, the 34 shareholders from Germany, Austria, the Netherlands and Switzerland agreed on the construction resolution regardingthe first construction phase of the offshore wind farm; the corresponding financing agreements have now been signed in Frankfurt. Covering an area 56 km2, the wind farm is situated about 45 km off the northern coast of the island of Borkum and directly adjacent to Alpha Ventus, Germany’s first offshore wind farm.
Trianel Borkum West II is the biggest wind-energy project in the German North Sea and the first wholly municipal offshore wind farm in Europe financed through a project financing. The project comprises the planning, construction and operation of the wind farm, and will be financed through project finance facilities in total of € 550.5 million. Eleven banks are involved in the financing: UniCredit Bank AG is acting as Coordination Bank and Bookrunner of the bank clubcomprising Dexia,Crédit Local, KFW IPEX-Bank and Coöperatieve Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank B.A. (Rabobank) – all of whom are acting as Initial Mandated Lead Arrangers – as well as the European Investment Bank (EIB) and NRW.Bank. ASN Bank, Deutsche Bank, Helaba, NIBC Bank N.V. and SEB AG are also contributing towards the financing.
The financing comprises loans of €470 million, which are being made available by the development banks European Investment Bank and NRW.Bank. Rabobank arranged the letter of credits requested under the permits of the project, KFW IPEX-Bank acted as insurance and technical bank and arranger of the VAT facility. Dexia provides various projects LCs and acted as modelling bank. UniCredit Bank AG also acted as facility and security agent, documentation bank as well as account bank.
Starting next summer the works for the foundations (in 30-metre-deep waters) of the first 40 Areva Wind M5000 turbines will be commenced off Borkum . Once completed, the turbines will generate a total output of 200MW, enough to provide some 200,000 households with green electricity. The almost 150-metre-high wind turbines will go into trial operation one year later, with regular grid operations set to commence in late 2012 / early 2013. There are plans to build a further 40 turbines in a second construction phase. Over €700 million has been invested in the first construction phase alone.
A Linklaters team led by Dr Eva Reudelhuber (Banking, Frankfurt) has advised the financing banks comprehensively.
Further team members were Julian Zaich, Dr Wolfram Distler, Tina Hinz, Tobias Klupsch, Carsten Rauch (all Banking, Frankfurt), Thomas Schulz, Sebastian Pooschke, Dr Tim Heitling, Dr Matthias von Kaler, Dr Carolin Reese, Kristina Zych, Isabel Baran and Sebastian Rohrer (all Corporate/M&A, Berlin).
