From: Mercom Capital Group

Matrix Renewables, a renewable energy company, entered into an agreement to acquire a 440 MW solar portfolio across Spain and Italy. The portfolio, which comprises five different assets with a capacity of 440 MW, includes 400 MW of solar PV in Spain and 40 MW in Italy. Construction on the first phase of these projects is expected to begin in 2022. Additional details related to the transaction were not disclosed.

Matrix Renewables also announced the closing of a long-term financing agreement for $290 million under a non-recourse U.S. Private Placement scheme. The financing pertains to Matrix Renewables’ portfolio of 328 MW distributed solar photovoltaic projects in Chile, eligible under the stabilized price mechanism for Pequenos Medios de Generacion Distribuida (PMGD) assets. This transaction represents the largest portfolio of PMGDs ever financed in Chile, as well as the first long-term U.S. Private Placement for this type of asset.

NextEnergy Capital, a solar investment and asset manager, announced the sale of the entire portfolio of operating solar projects owned by NextPower II (the Fund) in Italy. The Fund’s portfolio comprises 105 individual solar plants for a total installed capacity of 149 MW.  Its projects are located across Italy, in regions including Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, Tuscany, Puglia, Sardinia, Calabria, Campania, March, Molise, Abruzzo and Emilia-Romagna. The portfolio was consolidated across 21 individual acquisitions undertaken by NextEnergy Capital during the Fund’s investment period.

Through its British subsidiary ScottishPower, Iberdrola has signed two deals to acquire 17 solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the U.K., with a combined capacity of more than 800 MW. The contracts have been concluded separately with Elgin Energy, which owns 12 projects, and Lightsource BP, which controls the rest. Both companies are experienced developers with a long track record in renewable energy.

Lightsource bp, a solar project developer, closed on a $533 million multi-project financing package and will soon mobilize construction on its 135 MW (dc) Conway Solar project located near Happy, Arkansas, approximately 55 miles northeast of Little Rock, U.S. Lightsource bp will build, own and operate the facility and deliver the clean, renewable energy it generates to Conway Corp under a long-term power purchase agreement for their customers in the City of Conway. The solar project will generate enough electricity to power more than 21,400 homes and will also play a role in reducing the city’s carbon footprint by the equivalent of CO2 emissions from 35,400 fuel-burning cars annually.

Econergy Renewable Energy, an investor, developer, and operator in renewable energy projects across Europe has acquired a 100% share of Swangate Energy Storage, a 50 MW (100 MWh) storage project located in Yorkshire, Northern England, from Yoo Energy. The 50 MW Swangate project is part of a broader pipeline of projects consisting of more than 800 MW of storage (with expected 1,600 MWh capacity) and 900 MW of solar PV for Econergy. It is developing these UK storage projects in two configurations: co-location projects with the 900 MW solar PV pipeline and stand-alone grid-support storage projects. Econergy expects their total pipeline of storage and solar PV projects in the UK to be operational by 2025. Renew Legal acted as legal advisors on behalf of Econergy for the acquisition.

For reports and trackers on funding and M&A transactions in solar, energy storage, smart grid, and efficiency sectors, click here.

Read last week’s project finance brief.