Renewable Energies Financing

Scotia Capital, which represents the global corporate and investment banking and capital markets businesses of the Scotiabank Group, provides advisory services and financing in relation to a number of projects and companies that help reduce the impact on the environment.

This year, Scotia Capital increased its commitment to the financing of renewable energy projects, including making sizeable investments to several wind, hydro and other environmental projects. During 2007, we provided financing and raised more than $2 billion for the renewables sector. Some examples of our renewable energies and clean tech financing activities include:

• Joint lead placement agent role on a private placement for FPL Energy’s White Pine Hydro assets. FPL Energy is a leading clean energy provider, with natural gas, wind, solar, hydroelectric and nuclear power plants in operation across the U.S.
• Managing agent role and a US$25.5 million commitment to FPL Energy’s Lone Star Wind financing in Texas.
• Lead arranger role on Fortistar’s US$97.5 million landfill gas acquisition financing.
• Tier 1 role and a US$73.25 million commitment to Noble Environmental Power wind farm financing, plus an additional US$15 million participation in Noble’s wind turbine equipment financing.
• US$50 million commitment to AES Corporation’s Changuinola hydro project in Panama.
• Co-lead arranger & syndication agent on a C$55 million financing for EnGlobe Corp.’s acquisition of Biogénie, a company that specializes in contaminated site assessment and remediation. EnGlobe is a leading integrated environmental services company specializing in the management of organic-based waste streams and contaminated soils with an emphasis on beneficial re-use.
• Co-lead arranger & co-syndication agent on a C$405 million financing for GreenField Ethanol Inc. The financing was structured to provide the company with project financing for two new ethanol plants in Ontario and funds to expand their recently constructed plant in Quebec, as well as to refinance existing senior debt financing. GreenField is the largest producer and distributor of ethanol in Canada, a greenhouse gas-reducing vehicle fuel blend made from corn, wheat or other grains.
• Scotiabank has provided some $12.5 million in funding to the Doňa Julia Hydroelectric project in Costa Rica to help this facility expand the use of renewable energy technologies and reduce the country’s reliance on fossil fuels. This innovative, 16 megawatt plant produces an estimated 83-88 gigawatt hours of electricity per year and will offset 210,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions over its 15-year lifetime (1999-2014). The project has been accredited as a “Joint Implementation Project” under the Kyoto Protocol.

Renewable Energies Risk Management

A market leader for many years, Scotia Capital has recently observed an increased interest in energy hedging among clients as a result of rising oil prices, finite fossil fuel supplies, government policies and incentives and public climate change concern. In response to this momentum, Scotia Capital recently expanded its risk management team to include an energy derivatives group.

Based in Toronto, the Global Energy Solutions (GES) team has an international scope and provides complete risk management capabilities to Scotia Capital’s power, infrastructure, and oil & gas clients, as well as heavy users of energy.

With an increased emphasis on green initiatives, companies across North America have started to voluntarily implement pollution-reduction programs. These programs often involve the use of products such as carbon emission credits or green energy credits. GES has the ability to assist with the trading of carbon emission credits or green energy credits and work with clients to structure a program that accomplishes their desired carbon reduction goals.

Renewable Energies Research

Renewable energy sources, and the provision of financial products and services that help this sector grow, are important components of addressing the issue of climate change. Scotia Capital is helping promote the renewable energy sector and attract investor interest by offering extensive expertise to institutional clients in the area of renewable energy, including industry trends, public policy and economic analysis of the sector.

The Institutional Equity Research group, which recently added a dedicated alternative and renewable energies analyst position, prepares special reports on industry issues and provides analytical coverage of Canadian public companies in the sector. Through site visits and meetings with company management and energy experts, the research team aims to identify attractive investment opportunities in these companies.