The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said on Tuesday it is extending a 43 million euro ($43.6 million) loan to Croatian electricity producer Kunovac, jointly owned by Taaleri Energia’s SolarWind II Funds and local company ENCRO Kunovac, to finance the construction of two new wind farms.
This is the EBRD’s first wind-farm investment in Croatia and it will support the first utility-scale renewable project in Croatia developed outside of a renewables subsidy scheme, the lender said in a press release.
The EBRD proceeds will finance the construction and operation of two onshore windfarms in the Zadar region, with a joint total grid capacity of 111 MW, enough to power 85,000 households.
They will also help to avoid more than 78,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually and are expected to increase the country’s current electricity generation from renewable sources, excluding large hydro, by around 10%, it added.
The EBRD financing will be complemented by parallel loans from lender Zagrebacka Banka and the local development bank HBOR for a total debt financing package of 126 million euro.
The investment will allow Croatia to make progress towards its 2030 environmental targets and COP26 commitments, which envisage an increase in the share of electricity generation from wind and solar from 14% in 2020 to 27% in 2030 and 45% by 2050.
The EBRD has already supported two Taaleri Energia fund investments in wind farms in Serbia.
Taaleri Energia, part of Helsinki-listed Taaleri Group, is a renewable energy developer and fund manager. The company has one of the largest dedicated wind and solar investment teams in Europe and a 2.8 GW wind and solar portfolio in Europe, the US and the Middle East. Taaleri SolarWind II fund is its fifth and most recent private equity fund focusing on renewables.
The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Croatia. The bank has invested more than 4 billion euro in the country to date. Its focus there is on supporting private-sector competitiveness, developing capital markets and promoting the commercialisation of public companies. Its investments are combined with support for policies that promote a more enabling business environment.
(1 euro = 0.986 euro)
(SeeNews, August 16, 2022)
