PPC Renewables, a wholly owned subsidiary of Public Power Corporation, one of the leading power utilities in Southeast Europe, has been a pioneer in wind and solar power sectors since the 80s. It currently operates a fleet of renewable power plants in excess of 700 MW, while it has a projects portfolio of 1 GW under construction. The company aims to create an expanded and diversified portfolio of renewable and energy storage projects totalling 5 GW within the next five years.
A Reed Smith Athens team advised Phoebe Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of PPC Renewables, in securing a €294.40 million non-recourse financing to be used for the further development, construction and operation of one of the largest single-site solar photovoltaic projects in Europe with a total capacity of 550 MWp. An amount of €184 million has been sourced from European Union - NextGenerationEU funds via the Recovery and Resilience Facility plan 'Greece 2.0' and an amount of €110.40 million will be co-financed by Eurobank and Piraeus Bank, two of Greece's major commercial banks.
The project is developed in a decommissioned open-cast lignite mine of PPC Group in the area of Ptolemaida in Western Macedonia region, and, following its commissioning, it is expected to generate an output of 1TWh covering the needs of approximately 200,000 households. This project is part of a wider investment plan of PPC Renewables to install a significant volume of new solar photovoltaic capacity in the wider region of Western Macedonia.
The Reed Smith team that advised on the deal was led by Athens corporate partner Dimitris Assimakis, supported by counsel Minas Kitsilis, senior associate George Fountas, and associate Zissis Papazissis.
Assimakis, corporate partner and head of Reed Smith’s Greek energy team, commented: “We are very happy to have advised PPC Group on this financing and to help them reach closer to their aspirational goals to repurpose the group's lignite mines by turning the Western Macedonia region into one of the largest green energy hubs in Europe. A rapid paradigm shift, challenged by many as unfeasible a few years ago, which has become a growing reality. Another one project exemplifying PPC’s key role as one of the main drivers of the country’s ambitious goals for a more sustainable and resilient economy in the years to come. Indeed, a great pleasure and honour for us to be part of this success story.”