D. E. Shaw Renewable Investments announce financial close for Oregon wind farms

D. E. Shaw Renewable Investments, LLC (DESRI) and Oregon Windfarms, LLC (OWF) has announced the start of construction of five wind farms known as the Huntington Wind projects.

The projects are located 30 miles northwest of Ontario in Baker County, Oregon, and consist of five independent 10 MW wind facilities developed by OWF. All five projects have signed 20-year qualifying facility power purchase agreements (PPA) with Idaho Power Company and will use five 2 MW wind turbines supplied by General Electric Company.

Senior debt financing for the projects was provided by KeyBank, N.A. and CIT Bank, N.A., alongside a commitment for tax equity financing from U.S. Bancorp Community Development Corporation (USBCDC), a division of U.S. Bank.

Following the achievement of financial close in mid-November 2015, the projects began construction in late December 2015 and are on track to reach commercial operations in Q4 2016. Site Constructors, Inc. will serve as the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor for the projects.

Upon commencement of operations, the Huntington Wind projects are projected to generate enough clean, renewable energy to power over 9,000 households each year, according to metrics from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Bryan Martin, managing director and head of U.S. Private Equity at the D. E. Shaw group, has noted:

“We are proud to reach this important milestone for the Huntington Wind projects. We also appreciate the hard work of Idaho Power, OWF, the other equity investors, and our many other partners to bring these projects to financial close.”

Glenn Ikemoto, a member of OWF, stated:

“After nine years of development, we are grateful for the participation of a company with the capabilities and stature of DESRI in arranging the financing of the Huntington Wind Projects. We look forward to working with them as the projects move forward.”

Michael MacDonald, managing director of CIT Power & Project Finance, said:

“We are pleased to have had the opportunity to lead an important renewable energy financing for DESRI and the other equity investors to a successful close. This transaction demonstrates CIT’s ongoing commitment to leading transactions for key clients across the power sector and we look forward to building on this success in 2016 and beyond.”

Andrew Redinger, managing director and head of KeyBanc Capital Markets’ Utilities, Power and Renewables Group commented:

“We are excited to act as joint lead arranger and joint syndication agent for the Huntington Wind projects.This partnership shows our dedication to DESRI, the other equity investors in the projects, and the renewable energy sector as a whole, and we are excited to support these projects through construction and operation for many years to come."

Finally Dan Siegel, vice president of USBCDC, said:

“This is the ninth project that U.S. Bank has financed in collaboration with DESRI. We are enthusiastic to continue that strong relationship and the additional clean energy that it brings. We have a strong presence in Oregon and we are delighted to support the Huntington Wind projects along with the well-paying installation and operations jobs that they entail.”