The bonds, due in 2028, are the world's first publicly rated issue for a solar project and offer a new, innnovative way to finance large scale renewable energy projects.
The solar bonds were issued in two classes:
– Class A1 bonds of euro 97.6m in fixed rate notes paying 5.715 percent, due in 2028
– Class A2 bonds of euro 97.6m in fixed rate notes paying 4.839 percent, due in 2028
The Class A1 benefit from a loan guarantee by SACE (an insurance and financial group controlled by Italy's Ministry of Economy and Finance) and its Aa2 credit rating from Moody's. The class A2 bonds are rated Baa3 from Moody's and were purchased by the European Investment Bank.
SunPower completed the 72 MW Montalto di Castro solar park in December. It's one of the world's largest solar parks in terms of energy generation, with about 140 gigawatt hours of electricity a year.
