Actis energy platform Zuma Energía reaches financial close on one of Latin America’s largest wind farms in Mexico
- Reynosa Wind Farm will be one of the largest wind farms in Latin America with a total capacity of 424 MW.
- The wind farm will produce enough electricity to power approximately one million homes and mitigate 739 thousand tons of CO2 emissions annually.
- Actis created Zuma in 2014, in three years the company has secured an 800MW portfolio.
- Actis holds an 80% and Mesomerica Investments holds 20% stake in Zuma Energia.
- Project financing was secured through Bancomext, Banobras, Nafin, Santander and EKF.
Actis, a leading growth markets investor, today announced that renewable platform Zuma Energía, has secured US$600 million project financing for the construction of Reynosa Wind Farm, located in northeast Mexico. Once in operation, it will be the largest wind farm in Mexico and envisaged to be one of the largest in Latin America with a total capacity of 424MW.
Actis is one of the most significant private investors in renewable energy projects across Latin America. In 2014 it chose to partner with Mesomerica Investments to establish Zuma Energía in which Actis today holds an 80% stake.
Commercial operation is expected to commence at the end of 2018, and will produce enough clean power to supply approximately one million homes. It will also contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gases, preventing the emission of 739,000 tons of CO2 annually.
Zuma Energia’s Reynosa Wind Farm is the first project to achieve financial close on project financing of all projects awarded Power Purchase Awards in the long term electricity auctions held in 2016. Zuma´s success also suggests the auction mechanism and its structure within the national electric model has been successful in allowing the bankability of renewable energy projects which will contribute to their increasing competitiveness.
In addition to the Reynosa Wind Farm, Zuma Energía – with the financial backing of Actis and Mesoamerica- has a 50MW wind farm in operation in Oaxaca and two solar projects: Orejana in Sonora and Santa María in Chihuahua with a combined capacity of 273MW. Both solar projects were winners at the second auction and are about to announce their financial close. This portfolio has positioned Zuma as the leading Mexican provider of clean energy certificates in the country -2.3 million a year.
Zuma Energía is an example of the opportunities that derived from the Energy Reform in Mexico. According to PwC, the renewable energy sector will be responsible for the attraction of US$70 billion in foreign investments between 2015 and 2029.
The financial close was reached through development and commercial banks, specifically with Mexican National Bank of Foreign Trade (Bancomext), National Bank for Public Works and Services (Banobras), Nacional Financiera (Nafin), Santander and EKF.
“This is a great achievement for Zuma. In only three years the company has secured an 800MW portfolio, reached financial close for its largest project and positioned itself as a leader in Mexico’s renewable energy sector,” said Adrian Katzew, CEO of Zuma Energía. “We are currently witnessing the transformation of the country’s energy sector, where renewables are increasingly competitive and a real solution to reach sustainability."
Michael Harrington, Board Member of Zuma and Partner and Head of Mexico at Actis commented: “Today’s announcement is a key milestone in Zuma’s journey towards becoming the leading renewable energy company in Mexico. Under its exceptional management team, and employing best practices across the value chain, Zuma is uniquely positioned to capitalise on its leadership position and continue growing at a fast pace.
We are seeing the energy reforms play out and attract new players and international funding. Mexico has compelling fundamentals for investing in power generation, including superior natural resources, an evolving and supportive regulatory framework and a deep project finance capacity.”