LOS ANGELES, July 29, 2010 – The international law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP represented the United States Department of Energy (“DOE”) in connection with a $117 million loan guarantee for Kahuku Wind Power, LLC, a subsidiary of First Wind Holdings, LLC, to support the development, design, construction and operation of the company’s 30-MW wind energy project to be located on the north end of the island of Oahu, Hawaii. The financing is being provided by the Federal Financing Bank and guaranteed by the DOE under Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
“This landmark transaction creates a powerful model for partnership between the federal government and the private sector to foster green energy investment,” said Allan T. Marks, partner in Milbank’s Global Project Finance Group, who led the Milbank team that represented the DOE. “The financing of this new wind power project in Hawaii furthers the Energy Policy Act’s objectives of using innovative technologies to generate and sustain economic and environmental benefits, while moving away from our reliance on oil and expanding our nation's renewable energy portfolio.”
The Kahuku wind project will utilize innovative technology, including twelve 2.5-MW Clipper Liberty wind turbines and a 15 MVA, 10 MW/hour battery energy storage system to enhance electricity load stability. All output from the facility will be sold to Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc.
In addition to Mr. Marks, the other Milbank attorneys involved in this transaction include Global Project Finance Group associates Timothy K. Wendling, Joshua Ludmir and Francisco J. Luna, and Global Corporate Group partner Lewis T. Putman advising on environmental and permitting matters.
About Milbank
Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is a preeminent global law firm that for more than 140 years has provided innovative legal solutions to many of the world’s largest, most complex, “first-ever” corporate transactions and litigation. The firm’s transactional expertise includes capital markets, corporate finance and transactions, project finance, acquisition finance, and other major fields of law practice. Milbank litigation teams resolve disputes involving mergers and acquisitions, proxy battles, financings and securities offerings, intellectual property, white-collar crime, and corporate restructurings, among others. The firm’s clients range from prominent multinational financial, industrial and commercial enterprises to governments, institutions and individuals. The firm is headquartered in New York, with offices in Los Angeles, Washington, DC, London, Frankfurt, Munich, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Beijing and São Paulo.