Spanish renewable energy company Zelestra has reached financial close on the Aurora solar and energy storage project in Chile, through a US$282 million project financing package provided by Natixis CIB and BNP Paribas.

Chilean bank BCI provided a VAT facility. Clifford Chance advised Zelestra.

The hybrid Aurora project in Tarapacá, Chile, includes approximately 1 gigawatt-hour of energy storage and a 220-megawatt ( direct current ) solar plant.

In one of the largest energy storage schemes in Latin America, Zelestra designed a customized multi-technology solution that will provide Chilean company Abastible a guaranteed supply of solar energy during nighttime hours via a long-term power purchase agreement.  

Abastible is one of Chile’s leading energy companies, a leader in the liquefied natural gas market and growing strongly in recent years in the electricity market.

Last year, Solarpack rebranded as Zelestra. The company is backed by EQT, one of the world’s largest funds with more than €273 billion ( US$320.68 billion ) in assets under management.

Delivery of the project is being led by Zelestra’s internal EPC ( engineering, procurement and construction ) division. When completed, Aurora will generate approximately 600 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity per year, equivalent to the annual consumption of 200,000 Chilean households, and contribute significantly to the country’s decarbonization efforts.

“Aurora is a landmark transaction for Zelestra and reinforces the financial community’s confidence in our customer-first strategy to develop multi-technology solutions that deliver for our clients," says Zelestra chief executive officer Leo Moreno. "This is a very ambitious project that includes one of the largest battery storage projects in Latin America. With construction already underway, we are now focused on delivering the project on-time and on-budget.”

With a portfolio of approximately 29GW of carbon-free projects in 13 countries, Zelestra is a vertically integrated company specializing in the development, commercialization, construction, and operation of large-scale renewable energy projects.