ACCIONA Energy secures Cesce covered financing for the 923.4 MW MacIntyre wind farm project

Madrid, 22 March 2023.- Through its Green Investment Policy, Cesce is supporting this ACCIONA Energy project, which consists of the construction and operation of the MacIntyre wind farm in the south west of Brisbane (Queensland, Australia), which will comprise 162 wind turbines and will have an installed capacity of 923.4 MW.

Cesce is insuring the AUD 1.098 billion (approximately 712 million euros) syndicated loan granted to ACCIONA Energy's subsidiary to finance its investment in this project.

Total investment in the project is estimated at AUD 1.878 billion (approximately 1.219 Bn euros). ACCIONA Energy, through its subsidiary in Australia, owns 70% of the wind farm, while an investment partner will own the remaining 30%. ACCIONA Energy is also responsible for the development, engineering, construction, management, operation and maintenance of the project.

This project will be part of the so-called MacIntyre Complex comprising two wind farms: the MacIntyre wind farm (923.4 MW) and the Karara wind farm (102.6 MW). The two will have a combined capacity of 1,026 MW, making it the largest wind project in Australia to date and one of the largest in the world.

Xiana Méndez, Secretary of State for Trade, stressed that “we are very satisfied with the success of Cesce's Green Policy. Within just one year after the launching of this new cover, several transactions have already been signed under this product, which contributes to the international growth of Spanish companies operating in the field of green technologies, and which support their expansion into markets among the most thriving and demanding economies in the world, as is the case of Australia”.

Fernando Salazar, Executive Chairman of Cesce, stressed “the importance of Cesce's role as an ECA in facilitating international financing and investment for Spanish companies, in this case, for a renewable energy project. We are delighted to continue to be a key partner for Spanish companies in their internationalisation process"

Arantza Ezpeleta, CFSO of Acciona Energy, highlights that “Cesce's Green Investment Policy has allowed us to structure a very efficient long-term corporate finance solution that covers a large part of the investment needs in MacIntyre, the largest renewable project in our history. This ECA transaction is a milestone for our company both in terms of its size and as a greenfield financing with an additional element that amplifies the positive impact of the project on decarbonisation in the state of Queensland.”

The construction of the project developed by ACCIONA Energy started in April 2022 and is expected to start operations in February 2025; the operation and maintenance phase of the wind farm will last 30 years and the door-to-door term of the loan covered by Cesce will be 16 years.

Through this Green Investment Policy, Cesce continues to support the financing of Spanish companies' investments abroad, on this occasion through the cover of a green syndicated facility granted by 6 banks (MLAs), Banco Santander, CaixaBank, Crédit Agricole CIB, HSBC, ING and J.P. Morgan. Among these entities, Banco Santander intervenes as Agent before Cesce and Credit Agent. HSBC and J.P. Morgan have been involved as Cesce Coordinators. Finally, Crédit Agricole CIB and HSBC acted as ESG Coordinators.

This is the largest operation covered to date by Cesce through its Green Investment Policy.

About ACCIONA Energy

ACCIONA Energy is the world's largest 100% renewable energy company with no fossil legacy. It has 11.4GW of renewable energy and commercial operations in 30 countries. With more than 30 years of experience, ACCIONA Energy offers a broad portfolio of tailor-made energy solutions to help its corporate and institutional clients meet their decarbonisation targets. ACCIONA Energy is governed by the most demanding environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) criteria. ACCIONA S.A., a leading global company in the provision of regenerative solutions for a decarbonised economy, is a core shareholder of ACCIONA Energía. www.acciona-energia.com 

About Cesce

Cesce, Compañía Española de Seguros de Crédito a la Exportación heads a group of companies offering integrated commercial risk management solutions and the issuance of surety insurance and guarantees in Europe and Latin America. It also acts as the Spanish Export Credit Agency (ECA), managing export credit insurance and investment support on behalf of the Spanish State, as well and medium and long-term risk coverage for electro-intensive consumers. Cesce drives the growth of its more than 120,000 customers over the long term by providing them with smart solutions for managing commercial credit encompassing the whole value chain of the business (market prospecting, management and transfer of risk, and access to financing), and with surety and guarantee solutions enabling them to tackle new projects and accept new businesses.

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Antonio Vilela (HSBC), Rafael Mateo (Acciona), Roland Menor (CACIB), Xiana Méndez (Secretaría de Estado de Comercio), Iñigo de Roda (Banco Santander), Fernando Salazar (Cesce), Sara Villamil (ING), Aida Topcagic (J.P. Morgan) and Jaime Vigón (CaixaBank).