Page 14 - Energize August 2021

NEWS

Globeleq and Absa successfully refinance South African renewable plants

lobeleq, the leading independent power
company in Africa, and Absa Bank, a leading
Gfinancier in the renewable energy programme
in South Africa, have completed the senior debt
refinancing of three of Globeleq’s renewable power
plants. The purpose of the refinancing is to enhance the
projects’ capital structures, allowing for the release of
value to shareholders and the reduction of the tariff to
the national utility, and ultimately consumers in South
Africa.
The tariff reductions will save the national utility
more than R1-billion across the three assets over
the remaining 12-year term of the power purchase Contact Michael Ozersky, Globeleq, michael.ozersky@globeleq.com
agreements. Absa Bank acted as the mandated lead www.globeleq.com or Andile Makholwa, Absa Group, Tel 072 576-1999,
arranger and sole underwriter of the R5,2-billion debt andile.makholwa@absa.africa www.absa.africa
financing package. This transaction will be the second
refinancing of renewable assets under the Department
of Mineral Resources and Energy’s (DMRE) Independent
Power Producer Office (IPPO) refinancing protocol.
Globeleq hopes to eventually refinance the entire
portfolio of assets it owns in South Africa. The company visualize
proactively engaged in June 2020 after the IPPO design
requested owners of the South African renewable Round
1-3.5 projects to consider participating in a voluntary simulate
refinancing programme and led the refinancing process verify
on behalf of all its shareholders in the 138 MW Jeffreys
Bay Wind Farm, 50 MW De Aar Solar and 50 MW solve
Droogfontein Solar plants.
Mike Scholey, Globeleq’s CEO said: “Globeleq sees
this transaction as enabling future secondary market
debt, which in turn will stimulate new opportunities and
jobs and contribute to the economic development of
South Africa. We hope that other IPPs will look to do the
same and reduce the cost of their power to Eskom.”
Apart from reducing wholesale electricity prices, the PSCAD
refinancing will unlock funds for the shareholders which,
in turn, will encourage re-investment in the sector as The Professional’s Tool for Power Systems Simulation
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Absa’s Johan Koorts, Resource & Project Finance PSCAD is ideal for the analysis of electrical distortions and transients involving:
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Principal said “Absa Bank has been a major supporter • transformers and saturation
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since its inception and has to date arranged financing • assymetrical faults
for about 3 GW of projects across various bid windows. • FACTS/HVAC systems
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This transaction strongly demonstrates Absa’s ongoing • arc furnace flicker.
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Bernard Magoro, Head of the IPP Office said: “We For an evaluation copy of PSCAD, contact us via email at info@pscad.com
wish to thank all parties for the commitment shown
and the constructive way in which they approached this
refinancing and hope that the successful conclusion
thereof will lead to more IPPs taking comfort from
the process and coming to the fore to participate in T +1 204 989 1240 F +1 204 453 5074
www.pscad.com
this initiative. The IPPO is proud to be part of this
achievement.”
PSCAD Full Colour, Half-page Island Advertisement
IEEE Computer Applications in Power Magazine, July 2001
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