Clifford Chance advises lenders on €1 billion syndicated green guarantee facility for ENERCON

Global law firm Clifford Chance has advised the lenders on a €1 billion syndicated green guarantee facility for ENERCON, one of the world’s leading wind turbine manufacturers.

The banking consortium was coordinated by Commerzbank AG and Deutsche Bank AG, and comprised 11 institutions in total. As part of the Germany Fund, KfW is also participating in the financing. This marks the first transaction under its new Programme 877, #GrowWithGermany.

The financing is structured in line with the LMA Green Loan Principles and features the innovative “pure play” concept, underscoring ENERCON’s position as a capital goods company focused exclusively on renewable energy. The transaction also emphasises the significance of bank guarantees in supporting the delivery of large-scale wind energy projects.

In addition, ENERCON simultaneously repaid ahead of schedule the final instalments of its loan, originally amounting to €500 million, from the German Economic Stabilisation Fund (WSF), thereby formally completing its restructuring process.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Simon Reitz and senior associate Nico Köhler. It further comprised partners Bettina Steinhauer and Georg Lübbehüsen, senior associates Melanie Jotov-Schmitz and Marcel Knörchen, as well as associate Sebastian Wurm (all Debt Finance, Frankfurt). Partner Boudewijn Vermeer, senior associate Martine Trip and trainee lawyer Dounia Endlich (all Debt Finance, Amsterdam) advised on the transaction’s Dutch law aspects, while partner Sait Eryilmaz, senior associate Pelinsu Demircan and associate Arkin Hacioglu (all Project Development Finance, Istanbul) advised as to matters of Turkish law. Advice was also provided on tax matters by partner Olaf Mertgen and counsel Steffen Waadt (both Tax, Frankfurt) and on hedging matters by counsel Radoslav Lolov (Structured Finance, Frankfurt).