Invenergy has completed construction financing for its 302.4 MW Santa Rita East Wind Farm, located approximately 70 miles west of San Angelo, Texas.
Santander and Rabobank acted as co-lead arrangers and issuing banks, and Santander served as administrative agent.
Currently under construction, the Santa Rita East Wind Farm is the largest wind farm Invenergy has financed to date. Invenergy signed a purchase and sale agreement with AEP Renewables for the acquisition of a 75% interest in Santa Rita East at the project’s completion. Invenergy will retain a 25% stake and continue to provide operations, asset management and energy management services as part of a 20-year agreement.
In 2018, Invenergy announced three separate virtual power purchase agreements for Santa Rita East with corporations Grupo Bimbo (100 MW), Merck (60 MW) and Novartis (100 MW).
“The completion of construction financing for the Santa Rita East Wind Farm, Invenergy’s largest wind farm that we have financed to date, represents a significant milestone for the company,” says Invenergy’s president and chief operating officer, Jim Murphy. “We look forward to collaborating with AEP on this project and to helping leading corporations meet their sustainability goals.”
Santa Rita East is scheduled to begin commercial operations by mid-2019, creating more than 300 jobs during construction and 12-15 permanent jobs once operational.
