Legal & General Investment Management has provided debt financing for UK solar parks on behalf of an unnamed external investor.
The £40m financing of the renewables portfolio marks the first time LGIM has invested in infrastructure for a third-party client. It is expected to be the first of a series of investments made for the institution, according to a source close to the matter.
The UK listed notes, placed with LGIM by debt advisory company IDCM, will provide long-term financing to Capital Stage, a solar and wind-power operator based in Germany.
LGIM, the investment arm of UK insurer Legal & General, established its infrastructure business in 2012, and has since concluded 12 debt investment deals.
Silja Turville, head of infrastructure, said: “We initially dedicated our focus to LGIM’s internal capital base, proving our capabilities and expertise in this market. We are now pleased to have opened this up to external clients and are currently investigating a number of other attractive infrastructure investments on behalf of our external clients.”
The seven photovoltaic (PV) parks in the southwest of England and Wales were acquired by Capital Stage in February 2015. The notes will provide debt for the acquisition and replace the previous construction-phase financing arrangement.
Jean Christophe Oberto, executive director at IDCM, said the copmpany had arranged roughly £300m of long-term debt financing deals for solar assets in the UK.
Felix Goedhart, CEO of Capital Stage, said: “The possibility to finance the debt capital portion of our UK solar park through the issue of long-term listed notes at favourable conditions greatly expands our financing options.”
