Canadian utility Northland Power has secured T$118bn ($3.7bn) in credit for its 1GW Hai Long offshore wind project, to be located off the coast of Taiwan.
The 20-year non-recourse project financing is being provided by more than 15 international and local lenders with support from multiple Export Credit Agencies from six different countries.
With the financing in place, the project is expected to attain financial close shortly. Once financial close is achieved, total debt and equity for the project will be fully funded.
Northland Power president and CEO Mike Crawley said: “Today’s announcement is a major achievement for Northland, our partners and the offshore wind industry, globally and in Taiwan. We are progressing yet another world-class offshore wind project despite a challenging market environment.
“The project will produce high-quality and stable cash flow over a 30-year period with further optimisation opportunities. Offshore wind is necessary to meet global renewable energy demand in the years ahead and Northland is one of the few companies able to originate, develop, finance, construct and operate such facilities.”
The project is being developed as a joint venture (JV) between Northland and Japan-based Mitsui, each holding 60% and 40% interests, respectively.
To be located between 45km and 70km off the Changhua coast in the Taiwan Strait, the Hai Long project will be built in two phases, Hai Long 2 and Hai Long 3. The combined capacity of the two projects is 1.022GW.
While Hai Long 2A secured up to 300MW in grid capacity under a feed-in tariff, Hai Long 2B and 3 secured up to 744MW in the country’s first competitive price-based auction, which was held in 2018. Subsequently, a corporate power purchase agreement was signed for the 744MW portion last year.
All the necessary environmental clearances and major construction permits have been obtained. Early construction work and component fabrication have also started.
The wind farm is expected to begin operations in 2026/27.
Once built, Hai Long is anticipated to generate enough clean electricity to power one million Taiwanese homes annually.
The project is expected to significantly contribute to Taiwan’s aim to generate 15GW of offshore wind between 2026 and 2035.
Recently, Northland and its partner Orlen obtained $3.8bn in project financing for their JV offshore wind project Baltic Power. Situated off the coast of the Polish Baltic Sea, the project will have a capacity of 1.2GW.
