Carey assists Sonnedix in acquisition of ARCO renewable energy portfolio

Carey has assisted Sonnedix, a global independent solar power producer (IPP), in the acquisition of the ARCO renewable energy portfolio, including a wind farm and a solar PV plant.

White & Case also acted as counsel to Sonnedix in the US, while Garrigues and Kirkland & Ellis acted as counsel to the counterparty, Arroyo, in Chile and the US, respectively. Astris acted as financial advisor.

The acquired portfolio consists of the operating wind farm “El Arrayán”, its expansion under development “Carica”; the operating solar photovoltaic plant “Conejo”, its expansion under development “Librillo”; 13 Small Means of Distributed Generation (PMGDs), all in operation; the substation “Don Goyo”; and an energy storage system (BESS – Battery Energy Storage System), with an installed capacity of approx. 500 MW, located in different regions of Chile.

This transaction, closed on 19 October, also included the mandatory merger control procedure before the National Economic Prosecutor’s Office (FNE), which was approved unconditionally.

Thanks to this acquisition, Sonnedix enters the wind power generation market in Chile, a country where it has been present as a solar IPP since 2015. The company adds more than 290MW in renewable energy projects to its portfolio, reaching a total capacity of more than 1 GW in Chile, and 7.4 GW globally.

Manuel José Prieto and Shari Ben Moussa acted as in-house lawyers for Sonnedix.

White & Case’s team comprised partner Emilio Grandio and law clerk Chris Hebert.

Kirkland & Ellis’ team included partner Robert Goodin and associates Camille Walker and Petter Hyams.

Carey’s team was led by partners Juan Francisco Mackenna (pictured left) and Alejandra Daroch (pictured right), with support from associates Julio Recordon, Daniela Pfeffer, Pablo Morales, Constanza Trisotti, Domingo Russi and Catalina Valenzuela.