Norton Rose Fulbright has advised the National Commercial Bank of Jamaica, JCSD Trustee Services Limited and other financing parties on the $330m project financing of a 190MW LNG-to-power independent power project at Old Harbour, Jamaica.
Once operational, the project will be the largest power plant in Jamaica, providing approximately 20% of the country’s electricity. It will be the second plant to operate on gas imported via LNG and only the first to be developed and financed on a green-field basis.
The project is being developed by Jamaica Public Service Company, Marubeni Corporation and Korea East West Power.
Charles Whitney, partner, Norton Rose Fulbright comments:
“The project was well structured by the sponsors, who brought a unique combination of local and international skill sets, and this allowed them to successfully attract a quality group of banks and financial institutions led by National Commercial Bank of Jamaica.
“The Old Harbour IPP is a complex transaction as the IPP is being financed separately from LNG/gas handling infrastructure and supply project. The financing for the power station involves a combination of construction phase, project bond financing, together with a senior loan tranche provided by commercial lenders making it quite unique.
“We are pleased to have supported the bank group in bringing this strategic project to successful closing.”
The international Norton Rose Fulbright team was led by partners Charles Whitney and Chris Down with support from Jeremy Hushon, Jared Franicevic, Alexandra Jeffreys, Stephen Clugston, Vivek Katyal, Paddy Mohen, Marta Kawecka and Natalia Jankowska. Patterson Mair Hamilton acted as Jamaican legal advisers to the bank group.
Norton Rose Fulbright is a market leader in LNG and power having advised on many of the sectors’ ground breaking and award winning deals. This includes, most recently, the $741m financing of Bahrain’s LNG terminal project, the first LNG receiving and regasification PPP project in the Middle East, and the US$7.9 billion OCTP/Sankofa oil and gas development in Ghana.
