Demand exceeded €2bn, revealing high investor demand for sustainable finance options as Iberdrola sees first energy from French offshore wind.
Iberdrola has tapped the fixed income market in Europe, as it did in March and November last year, raising €850m for sustainable investments and with a ten-year maturity. The transaction was carried out as a green bond, which has become the Spanish energy giant’s standard practice.
As the world seeks greater private finance for the energy transition, the high demand for green bonds may prove crucial. A total of 142 investors participated in the Iberdrola issue with placements in France (34%), Germany-Austria (21%), Benelux (17%), the United Kingdom (16%) and other countries (12%).
Green bonds now tend to generate higher demand and lower cost across the infrastructure sector, and the funds obtained must be allocated to Green Eligible Assets, as defined in Iberdrola’s Green Financing Framework.
One such project is Iberdrola’s Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm, which has just produced its first green megawatts for the French grid.
The infrastructure for the wind farm off the coast of Brittany completed testing ahead of the official connection to the grid on 5 July 2023 and the capacity of the site will now rise to 1,820 GWh/year as the total number of wind turbines rises to 62.
Emmanuel Rollin, CEO of Iberdrola France, commented: “It is with great pride that we have started producing clean energy from the first wind turbines in the project. This is a landmark moment, following 12 years of hard work to deliver this mega-scale project, which contributes both to the energy security of Brittany and to the energy transition, a key element in the battle against climate change.”
