Wind Energy

AES Solar closes on ?77 million project financing for a 27 MW solar photovoltaic portfolio in Italy

AES Solar, a joint venture between The AES Corporation (NYSE: AES) and Riverstone Holdings LLC, announced today that it closed on €77 million of long-term non-recourse financing for Elpida, a portfolio of ten solar photovoltaic (PV) power plants totaling 27 MW, located in the Lazio and Sicily regions of Italy. The financing facility closed this past May and was used to refinance the equity advanced during construction of the Elpida project.

Three mandated lead arrangers (“MLAs”) participated in this financing: Dexia Crediop (Coordinating Bank and Facility Agent), together with DNB Bank (Technical Bank) and ING Bank (Insurance Bank). The facility is structured as a multi-borrower transaction.

Six of the solar power plants totaling 21 MW achieved commercial operation during the second half of 2011, while the remaining four PV installations totaling 6 MW completed construction during the first two months of 2012, qualifying them for a 20-year feed-in tariff regulated under the fourth Conto Energia renewable energy tariff structure.

AES Solar currently has a global operating portfolio of 232 MW in Bulgaria, France, Greece, India, Italy and Spain, and has 24 MW under construction in the United States.