Norton Rose Fulbright

Norton Rose Fulbright Athens team advises on largest interconnection project

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Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has advised IPTO/ADMIE, the owner and operator of the Greek electricity transmission grid, on the concession of the Crete – Attica HVDC interconnection project, to ADMIE’s subsidiary, Ariadne Interconnection. It is the largest electricity grid infrastructure project ever developed in the country and one of the longest subsea electricity links (328kms) developed so far globally.

The project includes the construction of a bipolar high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable, linking the island of Crete with the transmission grid in the Athens metropolitan area (Attica), with a rated power of 1 GW (2 x 500 MW), as well as the construction of electrode stations, AC/DC converter stations and onshore (underground) high voltage lines in Crete and Attica. The project is expected to be commissioned in 2022 and its estimated budget is €1 billion.

Advice included the drafting of the concession agreement and also extended to the consultation of the concession agreement with the national regulatory authority for energy (RAE) and credit institutions which are interested in financing the implementation of the project.

The Norton Rose Fulbright team was led by Athens-based partner Vassilis Koroxenidis with assistance from senior associate Sergios Karotsieris. Dimitris Assimakis, head of the firm’s Greek energy practice, assisted the team on the national and EU regulatory and public procurement issues relevant to the project.

Dimitris Assimakis commented: “We are delighted to have assisted ADMIE, the Greek electricity TSO, with the implementation of this emblematic electricity interconnection project. This project illustrates ADMIE’s strong commitment to the further expansion of the transmission grid to the Aegean Sea islands. This contributes not only to the improvement of a reliable power supply and the economic growth of these regions but, most importantly, helps combat their environmental degradation and enables the addition of new renewable capacity from the islands into the national grid.”

Norton Rose Fulbright advises on local RES market’s largest refinancing

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Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has advised Eurobank Ergasias and Alpha Bank on the €202 million non-recourse refinancing of a renewable energy projects portfolio operated by three subsidiaries of Total Eren, in Greece, it has announced in a statement.

The portfolio consists of five wind parks and seven solar photovoltaic parks with a total installed capacity of 162.4 MW, the company statement noted. This is the largest refinancing in the Greek renewable energy market, it added.

The multi-jurisdictional Norton Rose Fulbright team was led by Athens-based partner and head of the Greek energy practice, Dimitris Assimakis, with assistance from of counsel Dimitris Rampos, senior associates Minas Kitsilis and George Palogos and associates Christina Korinthios, George Asimakopoulos and Sylvia Betrosian.  The team also included lawyers from the firm’s Luxembourg, Paris and London offices, including Luxembourg-based partner Stéphane Braun and of counsel Cyril d’Herbes, Paris-based partner Anne Lapierre, of counsel Eran Chvika and London-based partner Daniel Franks.

Dimitris Assimakis commented: “We are delighted to have advised Eurobank Ergasias and Alpha Bank on the largest refinancing ever in the Greek renewable energy market. This transaction illustrates both banks’ strong commitment to the renewables sector, Total Eren’s market-leading position, along with the improving conditions of the banking sector and overall economy in Greece.”