Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) has advised National Westminster Bank (NatWest) as lenders of the £30 million portfolio of UK rooftop and ground-mounted solar PV projects run by Innova Energy (Innova) with a total installed capacity of 57 MW.
This is the first project financing undertaken by NatWest using SONIA (Sterling Overnight Index Average), which is being introduced as part of the LIBOR (London Interbank Offered Rate) transformation, a phase that has been under progress for a number of years and is expected to be completed by the end of 2021 with the release of LIBOR.
NatWest was the leading lender to the UK renewables sector by number of transactions between 2010 and 2019, according to InfraDeals. The bank has committed to provide £10 billion of funding and financing to the sustainable energy sector by the end of 2020 to accelerate the transition to a low carbon economy.
Innova is a privately-owned renewable energy corporation specializing in solar photovoltaic generation. Its portfolio consists of a mixture of ground-mounted and roof-mounted solar assets across the UK that benefit from both ROC and FIT accreditation.
“I am delighted to have advised Natwest on this landmark deal using SONIA, which underlines WFW’s position as the go-to legal adviser for project financings in the highly attractive and ever-expanding solar PV market. Once again, we have demonstrated our capacity to deliver innovative solutions to our clients across multiple service lines.”
Daisy East, led WFW London team advising NatWest.
