GIG reaches financial close on Bioenergie Wismar Combined Heat and Power Plant

Macquarie’s Green Investment Group (GIG), Wismar Pellets and PEARL Infrastructure Capital (PEARL) have reached financial close on the Bioenergie Wismar Combined Heat and Power Plant (Bioenergie Wismar) in northern Germany. Located at the Port of Wismar, it is GIG’s first bioenergy project in continental Europe.

Co-developed by GIG and Wismar Pellets, the combined heat and power (CHP) biomass plant will generate up to 18 MWe of electricity and 27 MWth of renewable heat. The project’s fuel supply is anchored by Wismar Pellets and ILIM Nordic Timbers, who will provide bark material as a by-product of their timber operations. Wismar Pellets and ILIM will also contract for the project’s steam output and utilize the heat at their neighboring facilities for timber drying. The project secured an EEG Feed-in-Tariff for its electricity output in November 2020.

For construction funding, GIG has partnered with PEARL, a specialized infrastructure investor, who as a majority shareholder will now take the project into construction with Wismar Pellets. Macquarie Capital, the project’s sole financial advisor, also raised a long-term project finance debt facility to support construction which was provided by Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg (LBBW). Commercial operations are anticipated to commence in Q4 2022.