The latest update from the Talanx Group;
The Talanx Group is investing double-digit millions of euros in expanding solar and wind energy capacity in Austria’s Burgenland region. The Group’s move is part of the largest renewable energy project finance transaction in Austria to date. The investment underscores the Talanx Group’s sustainable, responsible ESG-based investment policy, and its role as a leading renewables investor.
“The transaction underlines the important role played by ESG criteria in our investment policy”, said Jan Wicke, Talanx AG’s Chief Financial Officer. “Our investment continues our active participation in the shift towards sustainable energy sources. We find the investment attractive from both a sustainability and a risk viewpoint due to the diversified portfolio of wind power and photovoltaic projects and our collaboration with Burgenland Energie, the largest and most experienced utility in the region.”
The Talanx Group’s Ampega Asset Management GmbH – a Talanx AG subsidiary based in Cologne, Germany – has negotiated the finance for the Talanx insurers which takes the form of an amortising tranche of long-term debt as part of a consortium of funders for the transaction, comprising the European Investment Bank and commercial lenders to provide the funding. In concrete terms, the HDI and Targo insurers are participating in the funding. Burgenland Energie and the state of Burgenland are jointly providing equity capital to implement the projects.
Burgenland Energie is planning to use the transaction to construct new wind and solar farms and to repower legacy wind farms. The expansion plans foresee total generating capacity of roughly 715 megawatts, equivalent to the annual average power consumption for more than 185.000 households. The goal of a second phase is to expand the volume of electricity produced up to 2 gigawatts. The framework for follow-on finance from the Talanx Group is in place.
Austria and the state of Burgenland are pioneers in generating power from renewable sources and aim to be climate-neutral by 2030. This means that the project benefits from a positive market environment, with additional support coming from Austria’s Renewable Energy Act (Erneuerbaren-Ausbau-Gesetz – EAG). The region combines particularly favourable topography, stable wind yields, intense sunshine, and high demand for electricity due to its proximity to urban and industrial centres, and as such offers attractive conditions for generating power from renewable sources. Burgenland Energie, which is implementing the projects together with the state of Burgenland, has been running wind power projects in the Burgenland region for more than 25 years, making it one of the leaders on Austria’s renewable energy market.
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