International financing institutions, EBRD, EIB, and SEB, offer €84.8 million in loans for solar energy projects in Latvia.
Sunly Expands Latvia's Solar Power Capacity with €85 Million Financing Package
Sunly, an Estonia-based renewable energy developer, is set to increase Latvia's solar power capacity significantly with the construction of four hybrid solar parks. The ambitious project, with a total capacity of 329 megawatts (MW), is supported by an international financing package of nearly €85 million.
The four solar parks will be located in the municipalities of Valmiera, Krāslava, Madona, and Saldus. Each park will be equipped with solar photovoltaic systems, wind power, and battery energy storage solutions (BESS), enhancing grid stability and contributing to Latvia’s energy security and the Baltic region's shift towards clean power.
The financing package involves loans of €35.2 million each from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), plus €14.4 million from SEB bank. This marks the EBRD's first direct renewable energy financing in Latvia and is backed by the EU's InvestEU programme.
The solar parks, planned to be operational by early 2027, will produce enough electricity to supply up to 180,000 households annually. The projects are being financed on a non-recourse basis with no reliance on government subsidies or long-term power contracts.
Stockholm-based SEB has been a financial partner for Sunly since 2019. Rivage Investment, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, and Norway's largest pension company Kommunal Landspensjonskasse are among the investors.
The major European institutions have been very active in supporting clean energy projects across central and eastern Europe. The EBRD and EIB's involvement in Sunly's solar power expansion in Latvia is a testament to this commitment.
Sunly aims to expand its renewable capacity across the Baltic States and Poland significantly, targeting a total installed capacity of 4,700 MW by 2028. The Latvian solar parks form a core part of this strategy and complement Sunly’s other projects in the region, including wind farms and large solar parks in Estonia and Lithuania.
[1] Sunly [2] Investment in Sunly [3] EBRD Financing for Sunly [4] SEB Financing for Sunly [5] EIB Financing for Sunly
- The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has made its first direct renewable energy financing in Latvia through an investment in Sunly, an Estonia-based renewable energy developer, to support the construction of solar parks, reflecting a larger industry trend of blended finance in the energy sector towards clean power.
- The international financing package for Sunly's solar energy expansion in Latvia includes loans from SEB bank, the European Investment Bank (EIB), and the EBRD, along with private equity contributions from Rivage Investment, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, and Norway's largest pension company Kommunal Landspensjonskasse, all collaborating to push the renewables industry forward.
- The Latvian solar power expansion project by Sunly, which has garnered nearly €85 million in financing, encompasses the adoption of renewable energy technologies like battery energy storage solutions (BESS) and solar photovoltaic systems in the construction of four hybrid solar parks, contributing significantly to the national energy security and the shift towards clean power in the Baltic region.
