Project developer Çalık Enerji’s Swiss subsidiary has secured a €112mn financing package from a group of banks and export credit agencies, backing the construction of an onshore wind project in Kosovo.
The deal is comprised of a €105mn tranche covered by the Swiss export credit agency Serv, as well as an uncovered commercial tranche worth €6.5mn, with financing solely provided by German bank Helaba.
The borrower under these tranches is EV Wind Park, a company established to develop the 73MW wind power plant in south-western Kosovo.
Under the agreement, Deutsche Bank is also supplying Calik Enerji with US$25mn in equity financing under a tranche covered by Japan’s export credit agency, Nexi.
The transaction marks Çalık Enerji’s first renewable energy investment outside of Turkey and is also Serv’s inaugural wind project.
Nexi is covering 100% of the facility for political risks and 90% for commercial, while the Swiss ECA is backstopping Helaba for 95% across both risk factors.
The overall financing structure offers a “unique blend of tied and untied ECA support, enabling us to diversify both our funding sources and the geographic footprint of participating countries in the transaction”, says Naci Can, Çalık Enerji’s deputy CEO of international funding and investments.
Calik Enerji Swiss is the project’s lead engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) firm and will be exporting goods from Switzerland, sourcing some components from local sub-suppliers.
The firm will “not only meet but significantly exceed Serv’s Swiss content requirement threshold for the project”, Can tells GTR.
The equity portion of the deal has partially drawn down a US$100mn untied facility signed between Calik Enerji and Nexi in May 2024, with the Japanese agency extending support under its Lead initiative.
Established in 2020, Nexi’s Lead programme works to boost financing for projects that have a focus on contributing to global carbon neutrality, solving social issues and achieving the UN SDGs.
Calik Enerji expects to begin construction on the 73MW “shortly” and the project will take around 16 months to build, Can says.
Law firm Watson Farley and Williams advised Calik Enerji on the deal.
