E.ON Climate & Renewables secures equity financing for 150MW wind farm

E.ON Climate & Renewables (EC&R) North America has secured $150m institutional equity financing from Bank of America (BofA) Merrill Lynch for its 150MW Pioneer Trail Wind Farm in US.

The Bank of America Merrill Lynch will hold partial interest in the wind farm which is located in Ford and Iroquois counties in the state of Illinois.

The wind project uses 94 wind turbines of GE each with a generating capacity of 1.6MW and it also uses North American made turbines, blades and towers to produce sufficient renewable energy to power over 45,000 households.

EC&R North America CEO Steve Trenholm said the company welcomes Bank of America Merrill Lynch as an investor in our Pioneer Trail Wind Farm.

E.ON AG Finance senior vice president Verena Volpert said EC&R closely analyzes the specific aspects of each project to find a customized transaction tailored for the best fit.

"We look forward to a mutually beneficial long-term relationship with BofA Merrill," Volpert said.

Banc of America Public Capital Corp president Todd Karas said E.ON is a significant BofA Merrill institutional client, and the bank has expanded its relationship through this renewable energy project that also supports the local Illinois economy.

"Our investment in the Pioneer Trail Wind Farm is another step in Bank of America’s 10-year, $20 billion environmental business commitment," Karas said.

The Pioneer Trail Wind Farm is the EC&R’s 15th operational wind farm in North America which has boosted its total online capacity to 2,200MW.

E.ON Climate & Renewables (EC&R) is responsible for the E.ON group’s renewable energy and environmental protection activities around the world.

Bank of America is a financial institution serving individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses and large corporations.

Bank of America Public Capital Corp includes BofA Merrill’s Renewable Energy Finance group.