Norton Rose Fulbright advises NORD/LB on refinancing of Polish wind farm portfolio

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale (NORD/LB), the energy transition bank of choice, on the refinancing of a portfolio of wind farm projects in Poland.

The refinancing relates to the Żnin-Damasławek wind farm portfolio, which comprises 27 wind turbines with a total installed capacity of 56.4 MW, located in western Poland and owned by Eurowind Energy and Windbud. Eurowind Energy holds a growing portfolio of renewable energy projects in Poland of more than 12 GW. The deal reinforces NORD/LB's long-standing commitment to financing the energy transition in Poland and across Europe.

The transaction involved significant cross-border and multi-jurisdictional elements and simultaneous refinancing of existing indebtedness under two separate financing arrangements, requiring close coordination across financing, security, hedging and legal due diligence workstreams.

Norton Rose Fulbright advised the lender on all financing aspects of the transaction, including the hedging and security arrangements and conducted legal due diligence for the benefit of NORD/LB.

The Warsaw-based Norton Rose Fulbright team was led by counsel Daniel Popek. The finance workstream included associates Julia Pycka, Jakub Wiatrzyk and Kacper Wojtacha in Warsaw and partner Dirk Trautmann and senior associate Matthias Zimmermann in Munich. The due diligence workstream comprised counsel Cezary Zawiślak and associates Martyna Orłowska, Bartosz Odziemkowski, Nina Strzelczyk and Mikołaj Wołczyński.

The entire Norton Rose Fulbright team worked under the supervision of energy and project finance partner Tomasz Rogalski based in Warsaw, who oversaw all aspects of the transaction and coordinated the firm's cross-border legal support.

Daniel Popek commented:

"This refinancing demonstrates the continued attractiveness of the Polish renewable energy market to international lenders. The transaction required seamless coordination between multiple stakeholders and jurisdictions. We are pleased to have supported NORD/LB on this significant transaction and to have contributed to the ongoing development of renewable energy infrastructure in Poland."

About NORD/LB

NORD/LB Norddeutsche Landesbank is one of Germany's leading commercial banks, and a pioneer in renewable energy project finance since the 1990s, across more than 30 markets. As an institute under public law, it is part of the S-Finance Group. Its core business segments include corporate customers, special financing in the energy and infrastructure sectors, financing commercial real estate via Deutsche Hypo, capital market business, association business with the savings banks, and private and commercial customers including private banking. The bank is based in Hanover, Braunschweig, and Magdeburg and has branches in Oldenburg, Hamburg, Schwerin, Düsseldorf, and Munich. Outside Germany, NORD/LB is represented by a Pfandbrief bank (NORD/LB Covered Bond Bank) in Luxembourg and by branches in London and New York.

About Eurowind Energy

Eurowind Energy develops, builds, and operates renewable energy projects across Europe. The company is active within onshore wind, solar, battery storage, biogas, hydrogen, and Power-to-X, managing renewable energy assets throughout their entire lifecycle.

About Windbud

Windbud is an experienced renewable energy developer and investor active in the Polish market. The company focuses on the development, construction and operation of renewable energy assets and has played an important role in the growth of Poland's wind energy sector through the successful delivery of numerous clean energy projects.