Linklaters has advised Lecta, a leading European manufacturer and distributor of paper, on the financing of the construction of a refuse-derived fuel (RDF) boiler on its Condat paper mill in France.

This financing will enable Lecta to build the refuse-derived fuel (RDF) boiler on its Condat paper mill, which specialises in paper used for advertising publishing, luxury books and the press, as well as paper intended for the manufacture of labels. The RDF boiler project is based on circular economy, as we will collect from local sources the waste with high biogenic content that will be used as fuel. This will help to reduce the volume of waste that currently cannot be recovered and would otherwise end up in landfills.

This energy transformation project is in line with the Sustainability goals that Lecta is working on, as its on-going transition towards new growth markets and the utilisation of more sustainable energy. Once finished around mid-2024, it will reduce their imports of gas by about 280 GWh per year and therefore avoid the emission of about 55.000 tonnes per annum of CO2 generated from fossil-fuels.

The financing of the project has been made available by Kyotherm, an investment company specializing in renewable heat/steam and energy efficiency projects, who will finance up to EUR 45 million of a total project capex of EUR 56 million. The closing of the financing agreement signed is scheduled to happen during the first quarter of 2023 after a certain number of precedent conditions are met.

The Linklaters team in Paris was led by Financing, Energy and Infrastructure counsel Samuel Bordeleau, associates Salimatou Kaba and Abdullah Konaté. The super senior financing aspects at group level were handled by partner Carole Nerguararian and associate Cyprien Laforêt.