FRANCE: Hamburg Commercial Bank has acted as mandated lead arranger for the financing of 12 Alstom Avelia Horizon high speed trains ordered by new market entrant Proxima.
A consortium of banks is providing almost €500m compliant with the Loan Market Association’s Green loan criteria towards the €850m train order announced in October.
Proxima is backed by private equity firm Antin Infrastructure Partners. It is aiming to be the first French independent operator of high speed trains within France, offering services connecting Paris with Bordeaux, Rennes, Nantes and Angers.
‘We are very pleased to support Proxima with this major milestone financing, which will further drive the decarbonisation and electrification in the rail transportation sector’, said Inka Klinger, Head of Project Finance at property, project, shipping and aviation financing specialist Hamburg Commercial Bank on December 9.
‘With the liberalisation of the rail transport market in France, Proxima, as the first independent high speed train operator, will further expand the range of services available to rail passengers in France and meet the high demand for fast, low-carbon, interurban trains.’
