BlackRock’s Global Infrastructure Debt Team closed more than USD400 million through seven long-term debt investments across the renewables sector on behalf of its clients in 2017, supporting circa 2800 megawatts (MW) of generating capacity.
This brings the Global Infrastructure Debt Team’s total renewables debt portfolio to over USD1 billion, forming part of the total USD8 billion in Assets under Management (AuM) managed by the team.
Most recently, the team has closed a bilateral solar debt financing in the UK, the financing of the Walney Extension Offshore Wind Farm, where BlackRock was involved from the outset in structuring and negotiating the financing alongside a small group of anchor investors.
Jonathan Stevens, Head of European Infrastructure Debt at BlackRock, says: “Renewable power is increasingly important to our clients and we are delighted to continue building momentum in the sector. We are particularly pleased with our investment in the Walney Extension, where we played a key role in the debt structuring process.”
Erik Savi, Global Head of Infrastructure Debt at BlackRock, says, “The renewables sector globally is one of the most active infrastructure sectors in terms of deal flow, and provides a compelling opportunity to lend long-dated capital at attractive yields on behalf of our clients. More widely, we see many of our clients turning towards infrastructure and real assets investments to meet their long-term investment objectives.”
