Partners Group agrees $186m Australia wind farm deal

Additional equity funding has been provided by the project developer, CWP Renewables. The project, known as Sapphire, has also received various debt packages from Danish credit agency EKF, Australia's Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation.

Sapphire is planned to provide a total generation capacity of 270 megawatts across 75 turbines in northern New South Wales. It has secured a 20-year power purchase agreement for 100MW with the Australian Capital Territory government and is scheduled for completion in mid-2018.

"To meet the Australian government's renewable energy target, which aims to have 20% of the country's electricity generation derived from renewable sources by 2020, a significant amount of renewable capacity needs to be built out in the next few years," Benjamin Haan, managing director and Asia Pacific head of private infrastructure at Partners Group, said in a statement.

Partners Group led a A$450 million investment in Ararat Wind Farm last year alongside General Electric, Renewable Energy Systems and Canadian pension fund OPTrust. Sapphire and Ararat will have a combined capacity of over 500MW once completed, making them the second and fourth-largest wind farms in Australia, respectlvey.

The decision on Ararat came after the resolution of an Australian government impasse that allowed lawmakers to set renewable energy targets.

Investors have demonstrated an increased appetite for Australian cleantech as a result of the political momentum, with recent activity including an A$800 million commitment by QIC Global Infrastructure Fund and Future Fund Renewables Fund into a renewables-focused vehicle launched by domestic electricity provider AGL Energy. Earlier this year, the government also launched a A$20 million seed fund to support clean energy start-ups.

In early 2014, Partners Group raised EUR 1.5 billion ($1.6 million) for private equity direct investments after closing a dedicated global infrastructure vehicle at EUR1 billion. The firm's previous renewables investments include a $200 million commitment to a Taiwanese solar project and participation in a $250 million round in the Japan Solar platform. In 2012, it backed the construction of two projects by Thailand's Wind Energy.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Australasia
• Cleantech
• Infrastructure
• Early-stage
• Industrials
• Australia
• Partners Group
• energy