NextEnergy Solar Fund Ltd (LSE:NESF) has told investors that Santarém has signed a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Statkraft, a leading renewable producer in Europe's energy market.
The London-listed renewables investment group owns a 13% interest in Santarém, a 210-megawatt (MW) venture in Portugal which with today’s announcement will now supply Statkraft over an eight-year contract.
Electricity sold to Statkraft will come from three photovoltaic solar plants currently under construction in Portugal.
The deal builds on an existing relationship between NextEnergy and Statkraft, through a prior supply deal for a separate 50MW venture in Spain (via 25% owned Agenor).
"The PPA in place for Santarém, of which NESF holds a 13% stake, is with a high credit counterparty, provides secured long-term visibility of cash flows, and ultimately provides stable returns for NESF,” NextEnergy UK managing director Ross Grier said in a statement.
“International solar co-investments alongside private capital continues to offer attractive growth opportunities for NESF alongside some of the largest institutional investors in the world," he added.
NextEnergy noted that Santarém and Agenor were its first direct international co-investments, sourced alongside its $50mln commitment in NextPower III ESG.
NextPower III ESG is a $896mln private solar fund focused on utility-scale solar assets in OECD markets, which provided NESF the opportunity to efficiently and quickly access an established portfolio of operational and in-construction international solar assets.
The London-listed vehicle said that co-investing alongside the private fund remains attractive as such investments are undertaken on a no-fee, no-carry basis.
To date, NextPower III ESG has acquired 1.8GW of solar, made up of 149 individual high-quality assets across the USA, India, Chile, Portugal, Spain, Greece, and Poland.