The Alibunar Wind Farm supplies electricity to just under thirty thousand households
UniCredit Bank Serbia and Elicio Ali VE, a 100% subsidiary of Elicio NV, have successfully completed the refinancing of the 42 MW Alibunar Wind Farm, a facility which supplies electricity to just under thirty thousand households. The green energy produced by the project is expected to reduce carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions in Serbia by almost 95,000 tons per year.
The transaction underlines the strong and successful cooperation between the two companies, as well as UniCredit's market-leading position in the structuring and financing of wind power projects in Serbia.
UniCredit Bank Serbia is the leading structuring bank and sole lender in the EUR 53 million refinancing, whilst also taking up roles as account bank and hedging bank for the restructured interest rate swap.
Commenting on the transaction, Nikola Vuletić, Chairman of the Management Board of UniCredit Serbia, said: "We are proud that Elicio once again recognised our bank as a reliable partner for the first refinancing of an operational wind farm carried out in Serbia. For us, this transaction represents a very important milestone, which once again confirms our leadership in the field of financing renewables in Central and Eastern Europe. This is a clear example of how banks and the renewables sector at large can contribute to improving overall energy security and the consumption of renewable energy in Serbia."
Alain Janssens, CEO of Elicio, added: "This refinancing represents an important milestone as it affirms the strong fundamentals of the project and the bankable regulatory environment for renewable energy production in Serbia. The transaction also speaks to the level of funding available in the Serbian market to locally finance well-structured projects and to do so with longer tenors. These are crucial conditions for realising Serbia's considerable ambitions in terms of increased contribution of wind energy - an area in which Elicio will continue to actively participate."
Belgium-based Elicio, part of the Enodia/Nethys Group, specialises in developing, financing and operating energy projects. Elicio currently holds a portfolio of 540 MW operational onshore and offshore wind farms, with another sixty MW under construction. In addition to its Serbian projects, Elicio manages over thirty wind farms in Belgium and France and a sizeable portfolio of offshore wind farms in the North Sea.
UniCredit Bank Serbia has been active in structuring and arranging financings for renewables projects since the adoption of the first legal framework. In the Serbian market, UniCredit has participated in and arranged five wind farm financings overall - two of them alongside other financial institutions and the remainder under bilateral agreements.