Scatec has reached financial close and is starting construction of the three Kenhardt projects in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa under the Risk Mitigation Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (RMIPPPP). The total project comprises 540MW of solar capacity and a 225MW/1,140MWh battery. It will deliver 150MW of dispatchable power under a 20-year PPA to the Kenhardt region.The total capex of ZAR16.4 billion ($962 million) is financed by equity from the owners, Scatec (51%) and H1 Holdings (49%), and ZAR12.4 billion ($727 million) in non-recourse project debt. Lenders include Standard Bank as MLA and UK DFI British International Investments (BII). Scatec will be the EPC contractor and provide O&M and asset management services to the power plants. The value of Scatec’s Development and EPC contract for the project is ZAR13.7 billion ($800 million).The project is Africa’s largest and South Africa’s first baseload renewable energy project, powered entirely by renewable sources. It is also the first project to reach financial close under the RMIPPPP. In addition to being a green loan, Standard Bank, as sole derivative and hedge provider, executed one of the first ESG linked derivatives on the continent for the project.BII is acting as the lead bank and providing a ZAR2.2 billion senior debt investment. Alongside this, the DFI is providing an additional equity investment of ZAR445 million mezzanine financing to H1 Holdings, a broad-based black economic.