Estonian enewable energy producer Sunly has raised €300 million in debt financing to accelerate the construction of 1.3 GW of solar, wind, storage, and hybrid parks across the Baltics and Poland. This brings the company’s debt and equity capital from investors to €765 million.
As the EU actively works on reducing its dependence on Russian gas, it faces ongoing challenges.
In the Baltic states and Poland, Russia's significant influence in the regional energy market has historically exposed these areas to price fluctuations and supply disruptions associated with geopolitical tensions, often leading to higher energy costs for consumers than in other European nations. The upcoming desynchronisation from the Russian and Belarusian electricity grid in February next year aims to boost regional energy independence and security.
Sunly intends to develop integrated hybrid parks that combine wind, solar, and energy storage batteries at a single connection point and direct line to consumers.
This method improves energy production stability in various weather conditions and optimises cost-efficiency by reducing grid connectivity charges—forecasted to account for more than half of the total energy cost. The approach is expected to significantly benefit consumers, particularly large industrial clients with high energy consumption, by enhancing regional energy security and operational efficiency.
Priit Lepasepp, co-founder and CEO of Sunly, said:
“This investment enables us to improve our infrastructure with new grid connections and solar parks in the Baltics, supporting our onshore wind and storage pipeline expansion.
To help reduce energy costs, we will focus on two key areas: building a hybrid pipeline with storage capabilities and advancing the electrification of heating and mobility systems, thereby diminishing our reliance on imported fossil fuels and optimising the use of local renewable resources”.
This financing is provided by Rivage Investment via REDI HR2, its second high-yield infrastructure debt fund and its Fund for Infrastructure Climate Solutions, and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) through its Green Credit Fund I, with additional participation from Norwegian largest pension company Kommunal Landspensjonskasse (KLP) through funds managed by CIP.
Gaétane Tracz, Partner and Head of the Infrastructure Debt team at Rivage, said:
“We are delighted to support Sunly’s strong leadership team through their ambitious growth trajectory and to help accelerate the construction of hybrid renewable energy parks across the Baltics and Poland.”
Jakob Groot, Partner at CIP and Co-Head of the CI Green Credit Fund I, said:
“This financing package will contribute significantly to the development and construction of renewable energy projects, supporting the decarbonisation ambitions across the Baltics and Poland, and represents an attractive investment for our Green Credit Fund I”.
One of the first projects to benefit from this financing is the 244 MW Risti solar park in Estonia, which can cover the annual electricity consumption of 55,000 households. Currently intended as a hybrid park, Sunly already has expansion plans that include onshore wind turbines and battery storage in the future.
Construction will also immediately start on four solar parks in Latvia, with a combined capacity of 553 MW. These Latvian parks are also designed as hybrids, with eventual plans to integrate wind or battery storage or a combination of both. The 1.3 GW portfolio also includes several large hybrid solar parks in Lithuania, as well as both small and large solar parks in Poland by the end of 2026.