Chadbourne Advises Lenders on the El Pelícano Solar Project in Chile

Project Will Provide Power to Metro de Santiago

Chadbourne & Parke LLP represented the lenders, Crédit Agricole, Korea Development Bank (KDB), MUFG and SMBC, in connection with the US$199.5 million financing of the 100 MW El Pelícano solar project in Chile. El Pelícano will supply 42 percent of the electricity needed to power the Metro de Santiago, the subway system of Santiago, Chile.

The financing includes a construction and term loan of approximately US$190 million, as well as a seven-year credit facility for approximately US$10.5 million. The financing is backed by a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) to provide solar electricity to power Metro de Santiago. Under the terms of the PPA, project sponsor, SunPower, will supply 500 GWh of solar energy per year. The project is located near La Higuera in the Coquimbo region and Vallenar in Atacama, and it is expected to be online by the end of 2017.

“When El Pelícano becomes operational next year, it will be the largest source of electricity for Metro de Santiago, which is expected to draw 60 percent of its total power from solar and wind projects in 2018,” said Todd Alexander, the lead partner on the Chadbourne team. “This deal brings long-term renewable power to one of the world’s largest and most modern metro systems, and we are proud to have assisted our clients in making that happen.”

In addition to partner Todd Alexander, the team from Chadbourne included Robert Shapiro, Monika Szymanski, Lee Gordon, David Lamb, Jose Avila and Matthew Shellenhamer.

According to research from IJGlobal, Chadbourne was the #2 most active legal advisor in the world for renewable energy projects, ranked by total number of transactions. In 2016, the firm was honored by Chambers USA as the firm of the year for “Energy/Projects: Power (Including Renewables).”

About Chadbourne & Parke

For more than a century, Chadbourne & Parke has counseled innovators around the world. We are a full-service law firm that leverages the extraordinary talent from our network of international offices to offer the highest caliber client service in more than 80 countries and across every region on the globe. Today, we are recognized internationally for our groundbreaking work in emerging economies and our deep experience in energy and infrastructure, corporate and finance transactions, international disputes, and bankruptcy and financial restructuring.