Law firm Watson Farley & Williams Paris has advised Societe Generale and Unifergie on a senior unitranche loan granted for the refinancing of a portfolio of 12 photovoltaic power plants in south-eastern France owned by Monaco Energies Renouvelables (MER), WFL said on Thursday, April 27.
Operational for over six years, the portfolio has a total capacity of circa 100 MW. The loan was provided to Third Step France 2, the holding company for the SPV that own the plants.
Société Generale has been supporting the development of renewable energy for over 20 years and was the leading financier of renewable energy projects across the EMEA region as of end of June 2021 (Dealogic). The group is ahead of schedule on its pledge to invest €300bn+ to energy transition between 2022 and 2025 via dedicated sustainable financing solutions.
Unifergie is a subsidiary of Crédit Agricole Leasing & Factoring and has been financing energy management and environmental protection projects that contribute to sustainable development for over 20 years.
Owned by the Government of Monaco and the Société Monégasque de l’Electricité et du Gaz, MER is an investment company specialising in the financing of renewable energy production infrastructure in France and Europe. It already owns several ground-mounted photovoltaic power stations and wind farms in France and aims to help Monaco’s aim of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
Monaco Energies Renouvelables was advised by Astris Finance (financial), Pinsent Masons (legal) and PwC Société d’Avocats (tax).
ORIGINAL SOURCE: Watson Farley & Williams PHOTO: One of MER’s ground-mounted photovoltaic power station MER
