Watson, Farley & Williams, a leading international law firm, is pleased to announce that it has advised Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale (“NORD/LB”) on the acquisition financing of one of two sections of Finsterwalde, one of Germany’s largest solar parks (42 MWp), located in Brandenburg.

The solar farm was built by Q-Cells International GmbH, then divided as part of the financing process and sold to two separate operating companies. The project sponsor, a closed-end solar fund launched by LHI Leasing GmbH, has shares in both companies. The second section of the park was financed by Landesbank Baden-Württemberg.

Watson, Farley & Williams developed a ‘security pool’ concept for both the operating companies and banks, creating a common infrastructure to assist both parties in completing the deal. As part of the process of dividing the park, Watson, Farley & Williams’ team also undertook extensive due diligence and project contract negotiations to address the mutual needs of the banks.

NORD/LB is acknowledged as one of the leading financiers of large-scale renewable energy projects in Germany and Europe is also recognised for its considerable experience of onshore and offshore wind farm projects. This latest financing demonstrates its diversification into major solar projects.

Thomas Hollenhorst, Partner, International Project & Structured Finance Group in the firm’s Hamburg office led the Watson, Farley & Williams team, supported by lawyers Sven Fretthold (Project Finance, Hamburg), Daniel Marhewka (Corporate, Munich) and Sophia Abali (Project Finance, Hamburg).

Thomas Hollenhorst, Partner, International Project & Structured Finance Group in the firm’s Hamburg office comments: “We are extremely pleased to have been involved in a project of this significance and to support NORD/LB as it actively enters the solar market. The deal allowed us to demonstrate Watson, Farley & Williams’ ability to deliver true sector expertise across multiple legal disciplines.”