2021-04-09

Maiora’s First Syndicated Loan in Taiwan Receives NT$2.5 Billion from 5 Local Banks for 50MW Yongyao PV Plant with Estimate of 33,600 tons CO2 Reduction

Taipei---Being optimistic about Taiwan government's 2025 renewable energy development target, Maiora Renewable Energy, a Singapore company, is helping Taiwan transform into the Asia-Pacific green energy hub through receiving green finance for developing the 50MW Yongyao PV Plant in Changhua County. The PV plant will be built in the Changhua’s largest land subsidence area that has been abandoned for many years, and is regarded as an added value to local placemaking. Maiora and five local banks, including SinoPac, KGI, Fubon, EnTie, and Cathay United Bank, completed a syndicated loan signing ceremony at Le Méridien Taipei today.

Located in the western part of Dacheng Township, Changhua County, the Yongyao PV Plant is planned to occupy an unfavorable breeding and farming area of 49.6995 hectares. The project site has been abandoned for many years due to subsidence and seawater intrusion. With the goal of benefiting the county, the township, and the people, and in anticipation of the county government's investment opportunities, Maiora plans to install 125,010 ground-mounted PV panels by 2022 in a phased approach, creating the first large-scale green power plant in Taiwan to use Delta's VPC-certified 1,500-volt inverters. The 15MW first phase of the PV project is expected to be grid-connected by the end of 2021, with an estimated annual capacity of 19,710,000 kWh; the second and third phases are expected to be grid-connected in the third quarter of 2022. By then, the 50MW PV plant will provide up to 42,705,000 kWh of green electricity annually, which is the annual electricity consumption of about 19,000 households. The plant is also expected to reduce 33,600 tons of carbon annually, an effect equivalent to planting 3.5 million trees.

Clay Kinney, Maiora Renewable Energy’s partner, said: "It means a lot to the company that the financing for the Yongyao project was secured in three months. Although it is the first syndicated loan for Maiora in Taiwan market, the Taiwan banks quickly approved the financing with a total amount of NT$2.495 billion, which demonstrates their confidence and affirmation in the company. Based on the strong support from the local supply chain, Maiora will continue to create an economic engine for local growth with clean and green energy investments, while ensuring the quality of construction and taking care of the environment, which will lead to better development possibilities in the region.”

With the company’s global investment commitment to balanced development with local communities and by tapping into its solar development experience in Japan, Maiora has been exploring and working on a lot of large-scale PV projects across Taiwan since entering the market in 2019. With the start of the Yongyao PV Plant’s first phase construction and its grid connection at the end of the year, it will not only be an important contribution to the transformation of Taiwan's green energy, but also bring more enterprise resources and job opportunities to local residents through the expansion of renewable energy industry, realizing the mutual prosperity and benefits of PV and local residents.