Verkor secures over €1.3 bn in green financing for its battery gigafactory

Verkor has recently secured over €1.3 billion euros in green financing with the support of 16 commercial banks and 3 public banks. These funds will be directly allocated to the construction and financing of Verkor's first gigafactory located in Dunkirk, France with an initial production capacity of 16 GWh per year. 

With this, the total amount of financing secured by the French company for its first battery gigafactory and the Verkor Innovation Centre is valued at more than €3 billion. 

The company claims to have chosen to bring together a wide range of banking partners to meet the financing needs of its gigafactory and build a robust financial ecosystem to support the company's growth. After the initial impetus of the lead banks two years ago, Verkor has now secured the support of new public and private players.

Notably, the European Investment Bank has offered an investment of €400 million. This includes €270 million in direct loans under the 'InvestEU' mandate of the European Commission and €130 million of intermediated loans to the commercial banks funding the deal.

The banks are contributing €961 million in senior loans, €353 million of which are guaranteed by the French government under its "Garantie des Projets Stratégiques" (GPS) initiative. 

"We are proud to secure €1.3 billion to further develop our ambitions. This debt financing will enable us to finalize the construction of our Gigafactory, which will produce its first low-carbon battery cells in 2025", said Benoit Lemaignan, CEO of Verkor. 

"The participation of 19 leading banks in demonstrates the credibility of our project, and enables us to accelerate our drive to become one of Europe's leading battery manufacturers. We are also delighted that this financing takes the form of an unprecedented 'green loan'", he added. 

Located in the Dunkirk area, the gigafactory will be operational in 2025 and will create around 1,200 direct jobs and 3,000 indirect jobs over the next 2 years. This facility aims to make Verkor a major partner for players in the mobility and stationary storage sectors in Europe. 

Verkor aims to make low-carbon batteries with least environmental footprints. As proof of the environmental quality of its project, the company has received the "Dark Green" rating from the independent rating agency Standard & Poor's, the highest possible for a green loan. 

This rating guarantees that the project financed complies with numerous environmental criteria that are regularly audited and measured, to guarantee its ecological commitment.