Germany: First “green Schuldschein” worth EUR 550 million successfully issued by Nordex

The Nordex Group has successfully placed a promissory note (“Schuldscheindarlehen”) worth EUR 550 million with national and international investors. The banking syndicate comprises Bayerische Landesbank, BNP Paribas, Commerzbank, HSBC and UniCredit. Nordex will be using the proceeds of the issue primarily to finance the acquisition of Acciona Windpower, meaning that this transaction is funded on a medium and long-term basis. In addition, part of the proceeds will be used to repay the corporate bond maturing in April.

With this transaction, Nordex is widening its debt capital portfolio with the issue of the world’s first “green” Schuldschein. On the basis of an expert opinion submitted by DNV GL Business Assurance, the Climate Bond Standard Executive Board confirmed that the proceeds were being used solely for purposes with a positive impact on climate and environmental protection. Previously, only conventional “green” bonds had received this certification.

In this way, it was possible for investors required to follow environmental and social standards to subscribe to the investment. These ESG investors account for around 25% of the subscribers to the bonded loan. All told, just under one half of the funds raised were provided by German investors, particularly savings and cooperative banks. More than 50% of the proceeds came from international investors.

“Thanks to the strong demand, it was possible to more than double the originally planned volume of the Schuldschein. In addition to its solid balance-sheet structure, Nordex’s sustainable and stable business model met with great interest. This applies equally to conventional and ESG investors,” says Antonio Keglevich, head of Green Bond Origination at UniCredit Bank, which acted as a green structuring advisor.  

The bonded loan is being issued in tranches of 3, 5, 7 and 10 years with fixed or variable coupons. Depending on the tranche, the coupon on the issue date is between 1.5% and 3.0%.