Consorcio Energetico Punta Cana Macao (CEPM), an InterEnergy company, to secure a Green Loan from Bank of America and a Multilateral Development Bank to Advance its Ambition to Achieve Net Zero by 2030

InterEnergy's collaboration with Bank of America and the multilateral will scale renewable energy and infrastructure solutions in Small Island Developing States in the Caribbean

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, Nov. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- InterEnergy Group, one of the largest clean energy project developers, operators and owners in the Caribbean, Central and South America, and Bank of America, one of the world's leading financial institutions, announced today in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt at the COP27 United Nations Climate Change Conference, that InterEnergy's Dominican Republic-based utility, Consorcio Energetico Punta Cana Macao (CEPM) will secure a green loan from Bank of America and a multilateral development bank (MDB) to support its investments in renewable energy and clean transportation infrastructure projects to achieve its goal of 100% renewable energy generation by 2030.

Bank of America Chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan initially announced the collaboration with InterEnergy at COP26 in Glasgow last year at the World Leader's Summit as part of the Sustainable Markets Initiative, which was founded by His Majesty King Charles III in his former role as The Prince of Wales.

InterEnergy's partnership with Bank of America will include a first of its kind, multi-asset, multi-jurisdictional warehouse financing facility which will support the construction and operation of eligible renewable energy and clean transportation assets located in the Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Future phases will finance additional technologies including battery storage, wind generation, biomass and green hydrogen that will support CEPM's net-zero-by-2030 goal ('CEPM Zero').

CEPM is a leading electricity provider in the Dominican Republic, powering approximately 65 percent of the national tourism sector representing over 50,000 hotel rooms and more than 50,000 residential and business customers. Reaching net-zero emissions across the utility's portfolio will require an estimated 501 MW of renewable energy assets and 120 MWh of storage capacity. The green corporate loan structured and arranged by BofA represents the first phase of Bank of America's partnership with InterEnergy to support its build-out of solar and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

"The transaction will help advance a more sustainable future for the Dominican Republic and serve as proof of concept for similar efforts in the SIDS," said Rolando González Bunster, Chairman and CEO of InterEnergy Group. "Our hope is that CEPM's net-zero transition and blended financing structure will catalyze a flow of capital to clean energy and electric mobility infrastructure projects in the region."

"As the world transitions to meet the critical net zero carbon emissions goals, it is crucial to ensure emerging markets' access to global banking and capital markets for the financing they need to achieve their targets," said Karen Fang, Global Head of Sustainable Finance at Bank of America. "This transaction is an important example of the impact that can result from collaborative, blended finance approaches, and we expect to replicate this in other SIDS and the Commonwealth countries that are vulnerable to climate change and historically lacked access to scalable transition financing capital."

Bank of America is the sole structuring agent for the green A/B loan and acting as sole lead arranger and B lender, with the MDB acting as the lender of record. The loan is expected to have a three-year maturity and proceeds committed solely to the construction and operation of renewable energy assets. The transaction is expected to fund in December.

InterEnergy Group
InterEnergy Group is one of the largest diversified clean energy companies in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Group operates electric power generation plants in the region, specifically in the Dominican Republic, Panama, Jamaica, Chile and Uruguay, with a total installed, available and developing capacity of 2.1GW. InterEnergy plays a significant role in the tourism sector of the Dominican Republic where it owns and operates CEPM, the integrated utility that serves the fast-growing resort areas of Punta Cana, Bávaro, Macao, Uvero Alto, Miches, Bayahíbe and La Romana, covering over 70% of all hotel capacity in the country. InterEnergy has also been leading the transformation of Panama's energy sector with the Laudato Si' Wind Farm, the largest in Central America and the Caribbean, with a capacity of 215 MW and the Ikakos solar farm with a nominal capacity of 40 MW, using renewable resources for the supply of 100% its energy. More recently InterEnergy started construction of 670 MW natural gas Gatún project, which will add important base load capacity to the Panamanian system.

CEPM
CEPM is a vertically integrated private utility and a leader in the production and distribution of electricity and communication services in the eastern part of the Dominican Republic, including the tourist region of Punta Cana-Bávaro and Bayahíbe. With current available installed capacity of 315 MW, CEPM provides energy to 65% of the national tourism sector (over 50,000 hotel rooms) and to more than 50,000 residential and business customers.

Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 68 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,900 retail financial centers, approximately 16,000 ATMs and award-winning digital banking with approximately 56 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and approximately 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

Bank of America has set tangible sustainable finance goals and made measurable progress in mobilizing and scaling capital deployment to help drive social and environmental change. In 2021, Bank of America set a goal to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in financing activities, operations and supply chain before 2050. As part of the company's commitment to deploy $1.5 trillion in sustainable finance by 2030, approximately $250 billion of capital was mobilized and deployed aligned with the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals in 2021.

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Reporters may contact:

InterEnergy
Helena Sáenz Espona
Phone: +1.809.284.63.48
[email protected]

Bank of America
Sheryl Lee, Bank of America
Phone: 1.657.234.9950
[email protected]

SOURCE Bank of America Corporation