Allianz and Bank of America Merrill Lynch have together committed the tax equity for two wind parks developed by EDF Renewable Energy, one of the leading wind project developers in the United States.
The two wind farms, Roosevelt (250MW) and Milo (49.65MW), are adjacently located in Roosevelt County, New Mexico. The combined 150 wind turbines produce enough clean, renewable energy to power approximately 170,000 New Mexico households. Both projects are operational.
By investing in these two wind projects, Allianz has internationalised its renewables initiative beyond its European base, and takes its total investment to over 3 billion US-Dollars (around 2.9 billion euros) of equity investments in wind and solar assets.
In the U.S., renewables are incentivized through tax benefits based on production rather than premium electricity prices, as they are in Europe, and Allianz's strong position in insurance and asset management in the U.S. enables it to participate in this sector.
"This investment is a significant first step for us in the U.S. market and, with the renewal of the Production Tax Credit (PTC) legislation, we hope to be making further investments in the near and medium term", said David Jones, Head of Renewables at Allianz Capital Partners. "We are very pleased to be working with such a strong team of experienced partners in BofA Merrill Lynch and EDF RE and we look forward to making these projects a success and, hopefully, to working together on other projects in the future."
"We are enthusiastic both with the opportunity to partner again with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and to partner with Allianz Capital Partners in their first wind power tax equity investment", said Jim Peters, Vice President of Project Finance for EDF RE. "The commitment by these two partners reflects a confidence in the Roosevelt and Milo projects, in the New Mexico market, and in EDF RE, which we deeply appreciate. The transaction itself from beginning to conclusion demonstrated exceptional collaboration."
"Bank of America Merrill Lynch is pleased to partner with both Allianz Capital Partners, in its first U.S. wind power tax equity investment, and with EDF Renewable Energy on this important wind power development in New Mexico," said Todd Karas, head of Renewable Energy Finance at BofA Merrill Lynch. "We believe the financial services sector is in a unique position to help and provide the much needed capital and financing to accelerate a low carbon economy. Our $125 billion environmental business initiative demonstrates that commitment through lending, investing, capital raising, advisory services and developing financing solutions."
With this investment, Allianz has 60 wind farms and 7 solar parks, located in France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Austria, Finland, and now also includes the United States.
