British Solar Renewables (BSR) has completed its first portfolio financing. The facility is funded by Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Lloyds Bank.
The portfolio consists of five assets built or under construction in the UK and Australia, with a combined solar energy generation of 132 GWh per year. They will benefit from contracted income from AR5 from Contracts for Difference (CfD) utilities and corporate PPAs.
BSR will deliver, build, own and operate its pipeline of projects, as well as provide O&M and asset management. In July 2022, BSR was acquired by ICG Infrastructure.
ICG’s Paul Leveque, associate director of Infrastructure Equity, said: “We are pleased to see that BSR has secured a new debt facility to support the development of renewable projects in the UK and Australia. As the majority shareholder, we are proud to be part of the energy transition and support their efforts for a sustainable future.”
Michael Ozersky, CIO of BSR, added: “I am very proud of this important milestone as we continue to grow, build long-term relationships with key stakeholders and create value for our shareholders.”
Last week, BSR was granted planning permission for a solar project in Essex, the third to be approved this year. It had to resubmit applications for both the Essex project and a project in West Oxfordshire to make them more compatible with the local environment.
All solar parks will be managed with biodiversity in mind. Reflecting the developer’s focus on ecological improvement, BSR has worked with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust in Somerset as part of their SOS (Save Our Shrills) initiative which aims to encourage the Shrill Carder bee and other pollinators to to ‘thrive’ in his solar park.
James Taylor, head of infrastructure and project finance at Lloyds Bank, said: “We are pleased to build on our strong relationship with ICG, and are proud to support British Solar Renewables with a financing platform to unlock their pipeline of sustainable assets .
“We are impressed by BSR’s commitment to contributing to the UK’s transition to net zero; their goals align perfectly with ours, and we look forward to strengthening our partnership with them at this exciting point in their journey.”
