Dec 18, 2023   SOURCE: BusinessWire

Sabanci Renewables Closes $185M Tax Equity Financing with Advantage Capital for Cutlass Solar II Project

Advantage Capital, a leading impact investment firm, announced today that it has committed to provide a $185 million investment to Sabanci Renewables Inc., a North American subsidiary of Sabanci Holding, to complete the financing of its Cutlass Solar II project. Located approximately 40 miles southwest of Houston in Fort Bend County, Cutlass II is a 272 MWdc utility-scale solar project under construction in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), one of the largest U.S. markets for renewable energy development.

Advantage Capital’s tax equity investment, which leverages federal Investment Tax Credits (ITCs), will provide the external capital necessary for Sabanci to complete construction of the project.

“This investment with Sabanci Renewables perfectly aligns with Advantage Capital’s commitment to funding clean energy projects nationwide and will especially have a positive impact on the community in greater Fort Bend County, Texas,” said Tom Bitting, Principal at Advantage Capital. “We are thrilled to be working with Sabanci, a trusted name in the global energy industry, in bringing this project online for the benefit of its stakeholders.”

Cutlass II is expected to commence operations in April 2024, and includes over 500,000 solar panels situated on over 1,000 acres of land, which will provide sustainable electricity to more than 80,000 homes in Texas and create hundreds of jobs for the local economy during execution. The project will also help to mitigate energy supply security concerns, especially in the hot summer months within the growing Houston hub.

“We are happy to partner up with Advantage Capital in our first renewable energy project in the U.S. and proud to demonstrate our execution capabilities in such a competitive market under such a challenging environment,” said Ismail Bilgin, CEO of Sabanci Renewables.

Allen & Overy and Husch Blackwell served as counsel for Advantage Capital on the transaction, and Troutman Pepper and Duggins Wren Mann & Romero served as counsel for Sabanci Renewables. Carbon Reduction Capital (CRC), formerly known as CohnReznick Capital, also served as Sabanci’s financial advisor.

About Advantage Capital

Advantage Capital works with renewable energy developers to expand community access to clean energy and invigorate local economies, providing tax-advantaged financing for high-impact renewable energy projects across the U.S. In recent years, the company has invested in over 100 non-residential projects (including C&I, community solar, and utility-scale) in addition to more than 10,000 residential rooftop systems throughout the U.S. and its territories. Since 1992, Advantage Capital has invested more than $4.2 billion in companies from a diverse array of industry sectors and has helped support more than 67,000 jobs. Learn more at advantagecap.com, or via X (formerly Twitter) or LinkedIn.

About Sabanci Renewables

Sabanci Renewables Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sabanci Holding, a leading Turkish conglomerate founded in 1967. Sabanci Holding is engaged in a wide variety of business activities through its subsidiaries and affiliates, mainly in the energy, banking, financial services, industrials, building materials, digital and retail sectors. Within its energy business, Sabanci has a strong reputation developing and operating energy projects, and currently operates 4 GW of diversified power plant portfolio in Turkey. Through Sabanci Renewables, energy arm of Sabanci Holding in United States, targeting to establish 1 GW of renewable portfolio consisting of utility-scale solar and on-shore wind projects all over U.S. by the end of 2025. Together with Cutlass II and its second utility-scale solar project investment, Oriana Solar, Sabanci Renewables owns 500 MW of capacity under construction. These significant investments demonstrate Sabanci's unwavering commitment to clean energy solutions and its dedication to support a more sustainable future, globally. Learn more at sabanciclimatetech.com.

Advantage Capital is an Investment Adviser registered with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission. Such registration, however, does not imply a certain level of skill or training. This release has been prepared for informational purposes and to announce a prior event, and nothing herein should be construed as an offer of investment advisory services or as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to purchase any securities or investment product. All offers of investment interests in any fund or investment vehicle managed directly or indirectly by Advantage Capital are and will be made only to qualified prospective investors pursuant to separate and definitive offering and subscription documents in accordance with applicable federal and state securities laws. Advantage Capital is an equal opportunity provider.

Any third-party statements herein are by persons other than current clients or investors in any private fund directly or indirectly managed by Advantage Capital, and although Advantage Capital did invest cash funds in Sabanci Renewables (“Sabanci”), Ismail Bilgin (Sabanci’s Chief Executive Officer) has not received any direct compensation, whether in cash or non-cash form, for the statements or opinions expressed herein. There are no known material conflicts of interest on the part of any third party making or expressing such statements or opinions resulting from such party's relationship with Advantage Capital or from Advantage Capital’s investment in Sabanci.