Press releases

Frankfurt am Main, 27.11.2018

NEAG Norddeutsche Energie AG, a Hamburg-based IPP company with a portfolio of approx. 230 MW currently, receives a mezzanine financing facility to finance ready-to-build wind projects in Germany. The credit line will be provided over a period of up to 3 years and will be used to the further extension of the portfolio. Initially, the funds will be used to build three German wind projects with a total volume of 37 MW, which succeeded in the last onshore wind tenders. Capcora advised NEAG on both structuring of the transaction and sourcing of investors.

NEAG Norddeutsche Energie AG ("NEAG") raised a warehouse facility in the double-digit millions through its subsidiary NEAG Norddeutsche Energie Invest 1 GmbH, which acts as a sub-holding company for three project companies.

NEAG will use the mezzanine proceeds to pre-finance the bulk of the equity required to build three new wind projects. After commissioning of the plants or a holding period of one or two years, the wind farms are to be transferred to another vehicle from NEAG, which will keep the projects in the long term. The funds released can then be used on a revolving basis to finance new projects.

The initially financed portfolio consists of two wind farms already under construction with 7 MW and 16 MW and a total of 6 wind turbines ("WTG") in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as well as a wind farm with 4 WTG with a planned nominal output of 14.25 MW. Construction start of the third project is planned before the end of the year. All projects are scheduled to become operational by the mid of next year.

NEAG is an investment company founded in 2017 which succeeded to rapidly build up a significant wind portfolio of more than 230 MW in Germany and France. At the end of 2017, NEAG launched a special AIF with EUR 50 million, which was placed with institutional investors. The fund was fully invested within half a year. NEAG is already planning to expand the fund. In addition, NEAG is structuring a second investment vehicle with the help of Capcora, which should be ready next year.

The innovative financing line offers NEAG the opportunity to refinance wind farms which are under construction and then transfer them to their own funds after commissioning with a lower risk profile.

"The warehouse facility is an ideal supplement to our existing and planned vehicles. Through this revolving bridge financing line, we have the possibility to bridge finance the wind farms during the construction phase and, after commissioning or even later, transfer them to our long-term funds at a minimized risk. ", said Sebastian Adler, CEO of NEAG.

"We are pleased to have advised NEAG on this exciting and complex transaction starting from the first idea until closing. This facility has been tailored specifically to meet the needs of our client and represents a novelty in the German project finance landscape.", said Alexander Enrique Kuhn, managing partner and responsible for the energy and infrastructure division at Capcora.

Capcora advised NEAG as a financial advisor on sourcing and transaction management, the negotiation and shaping of the mezzanine loan, as well as on commercial due diligence and financial modeling.

On the legal side, the transaction was supported by Alexander M. Wojtek, Partner for Capital Markets & Banking at the law firm Luther Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH.

About NEAG Norddeutsche Energie AG:

NEAG Norddeutsche Energie AG offers attractive infrastructure investments and a comprehensive range of services in the field of wind energy. The focus of NEAG is on the allocation of investors, arranging project finances and the structuring of special AIFs. We consult, accompany and purchase wind farm portfolios and hold shares in project companies. Our customers benefit from continuous energy yields, our networking in the wind family and dynamic cooperation. www.ne-ag.com

About Luther Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH:

Luther is a leading German commercial law firm that offers comprehensive legal and tax services. The full-service law firm employs more than 380 lawyers and tax advisors and is represented at 10 German economic centres and at important investment locations and financial centres in Europe and Asia with international offices in Brussels, London, Luxembourg, Shanghai, Singapore and Yangon. Our clients are medium-sized enterprises and large corporations, as well as the public sector. www.luther-lawfirm.com

About Capcora:

Capcora is a consulting firm, specialized on real assets. Capcora procures equity, mezzanine and debt financing for energy and infrastructure projects, real estate, and medium sized companies. The focus is especially on mezzanine financing for the recapitalization of tied-up liquidity in operating assets as well as for bridge financing of developments and construction measures in the area of renewable energies (photovoltaics, onshore wind) and real estate through alternative financing sources. www.capcora.com