German KfW IPEX-Bank is financing a 37.4 MW onshore wind farm in east Lancashire, UK.
Crook Hill Wind Farm is sponsored by InfraRed Capital Partners, a leading global investment management company.
Acting as Sole Mandated Lead Arranger KfW IPEX-Bank is providing the project with a loan of £56.5 million (US$96.8 million).
Crook Hill consists of 11 modern 3.4 MW type "104" wind turbines, delivered by the German manufacturer Senvion from Hamburg. Senvion has also agreed a 20 year Operations & Maintenance (O&M) contract. Construction is due to start in April 2015 with project handover completed by July 2015.
A 15 year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) has been signed with Norwegian utility company Statkraft. Construction of Crook Hill is already underway.
James Hall-Smith, Team Head of InfraRed Capital Partners, stated:
We are delighted that KfW IPEX-Bank has provided a loan for the project at Crook Hill Wind Farm, which has the capacity to generate electricity for around 25,000 homes from July 2015.
InfraRed Capital Partners has appointed Partnerships for Renewables (PfR) as construction managers for the project. PfR has previously worked with Senvion and recently opened the Oakdale wind farm in Caerphilly, Wales, which features the first serial produced Senvion MM100 turbines in the world.