SGS Awarded 2013 Project Finance Offshore Deal of the Year for Butendiek Project

On 20 February 2014 in London, SGS was awarded the Project Finance Magazine 2013 Europe Offshore Deal of the Year Award for work done on the Butendiek Offshore Wind Farm project.

The Project

At the end of 2011, Marguerite Adviser S. A. approached SGS to perform technical due diligence services for the Butendiek Offshore Wind Farm project in order to secure financing.

SGS expertise and extensive experience in similar projects such as Global Tech I and Borkum West II convinced Marguerite Adviser S. A. project leaders that SGS was the right partner to assist in moving the project forward. Officials at Marguerite were also impressed with the deep SGS knowledge of BSH (the German acronym for the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency) design and approval requirements as well as how to successfully obtain mandatory agency-issued project permits and licenses. Based in Luxembourg, Marguerite is the adviser of the 2020 European Fund for Energy, Climate Change and Infrastructure which is established with the backing of six of Europe's leading public financial institutions to make capital-intensive infrastructure investments, mainly in renewables, energy and infrastructure.

The Prize

Together with other firms involved in the project, SGS was awarded the 2013 Project Finance Award for Butendiek, taking the trophy for Europe Offshore Wind Deal of the Year. Awarded by Project Finance Magazine, Euromoney Publications' flagship international infrastructure finance title, the distinguished honor recognizes excellence in the financing of both large and small infrastructure projects.

Project Finance Awards are given for innovation, deal repeatability, best practice, problem solving, risk mitigation, value for money and speed of delivery in the financing of infrastructure projects.

300-350 of the year's best deals are vetted, weighted and shortlisted by Project Finance Magazine journalists and then debated internally and with industry representatives. Judges consider the context of the lending climate at the time of closing and determine how a deal will influence future financings.

SGS is honored to have been part of yet another project distinguished with this prestigious award. SGS had already been part of projects awarded similar prizes in 2010 (Supercritical Extension of the Belchatow Power Plant, Poland; Maple Ethanol project, Peru) and 2011 (Addax Bioenergy Makeni Ethanol project, Sierra Leone).

The Party

Over 500 guests attended The Annual Project Finance Europe and Africa Deals of the Year Awards Dinner hosted by Project Finance Magazine in London on Thursday, 20 February 2014. The dinner and awards ceremony acknowledged innovation and excellence within project finance markets.

The Payoff

When investing in or developing major energy projects, all technical risks must be understood and avoided before any commitment decision can be made. SGS technical due diligence services provided a full technical risk review, helping both Butendiek project leaders and investors to understand the project feasibility and successfully secure project financing.

For further information, please contact:
SGS Industrial Services
Rödingsmarkt 16
20459 Hamburg
Germany
Email: industrial.pr@sgs.com
Website: http://www.sgs.com/en/Energy/Energy-Sources/Wind/Services-in-the-In-Service-Phase/Endoscope-Inspection.aspx

About SGS

SGS is the world's leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With more than 80,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 1,650 offices and laboratories around the world.