Antin wins EUR112 million hollow victory in Spanish CSP

Subscribe to our newsletter and get the latest news and business opportunities in your inbox

Antin Infrastructure Partners has been awarded EUR112 million (US$125.5 million) in compensation from Spain under the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) after the conclusion of the legal battle over two concentrating solar power plants in Granada that the fund acquired in 2011.

The company has invested in the concentrated solar plants (CSP) sector in 2011 because it regarded it as 'more sheltered from regulatory change' than the solar photovoltaic projects, which had been damaged by tariff cuts in 2010. 

The decision by the Washington-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes relates to the investments made by Antin and Deutsche Asset Management in 2011 in the Andasol I and II concentrated solar power plants, both generating 50MW capacity. DWS is pursuing its case separately through the ICSID.

However, the investment turned sour in 2012, when the Spanish government enacted further retroactive cuts to the subsidies paid to renewable energy assets. The government had, in the previous two years, already enacted cuts to solar PV and wind, as it sought to slash Spain’s electricity tariff deficit. An additional round of cuts was made in 2013.

ICSID rulings cannot be appealed but the Spanish government can request an annulment, although it is not thought to be considering this. The Antin award is the third related to Spanish solar cuts following an award to EISER Infrastructure last year and Masdar in May, while investment fund Novenergia achieved a positive settlement in a separate court. However, the savings the Spanish government realized are understood to greatly exceed the compensation awarded thus far.

List of the country updates

Country updates

  • June 17, 2019

    Endesa starts construction of Los Llanos wind farm in Burgos

    Endesa, through its renewable energy subsidiary Enel Green Power Spain (EGPE), has started the construction of the Ampliación Los Llanos wind farm, with a capacity of 20 megawatts (MW), wh...

    Read more
  • June 14, 2019

    Europe´s largest solar PV project moves forward in Spain

    Iberdrola is moving forward with its renewables strategy with the Francisco Pizarro project which, with 590 MW and investment totaling more than EUR300 million (US$337.9 million), will become Europe's...

    Read more
  • June 07, 2019

    ContourGlobal closes sale of 49% stake in Spanish concentrated solar power portfolio

    ContourGlobal plc has announced that it has closed the transaction with Credit Suisse Energy Infrastructure Partners AG. The EUR134 million (US$149.9 million) deal involves the 49% stake sale in Cont...

    Read more
  • June 07, 2019

    Abdul Latif Jameel hires JP Morgan for FRV sale

    Abdul Latif Jameel Ltd, a Saudi Arabia-based company, has hired JPMorgan Chase & Co to facilitate the sale of the solar project developer, Spain’s Fotowatio Renewable Ventures BV (...

    Read more
  • June 06, 2019

    Repsol, Macquarie Group sets to acquire X-Elio

    The consortium formed by oil company Repsol SA and Australia’s Macquarie Group Ltd is set to acquire the Spanish renewables energy project developer, X-Elio, owned 80/20 by US pri...

    Read more

Share this update