Solvay, Caisse des Dépôts and Marubeni announce financing of cogeneration plants

Solvay, Caisse des Dépôts, and Marubeni Europe have expanded their energy efficiency partnership with two new projects to finance and operate co-generation plants at Solvay’s facilities in Tavaux (France) and in Spinetta (Italy).

The three partners have created a holding company EEco to speed up the development of these innovative energy efficiency projects and facilitate their management. Backed by a pioneering finance scheme, EEco Holding offers both the technological expertise and capacity to improve the energy and environmental management at limited investments for the customers.

EEco Holding groups four projects, Solvay’s plants in Tavaux and Spinetta projects plus projects announced earlier at Solvay’s plants in La Rochelle and Lyon (France) and which total a production capacity of 230 MW of electrical power and over 900 t/h of steam.

EEco Holding has settled a non-recourse project finance provided by MUFG’s banking arm, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation Group.

This innovative structure seeks to continue financing large-scale projects to assist industrial sites in reducing their energy consumption. Projects will be implemented on Solvay’s and third party plants.

Beyond co-financing the project, Solvay and Marubeni will bring their know-how in energy asset operations and maintenance. As for Caisse des Dépôts, this initiative shows that industrial energy efficiency projects can provide both a satisfying risk/return and significant environmental benefits.