Estonia-based renewable energy developer Sunly has secured EUR 62 million in loans to build and operate the 244-MWp Risti solar park at home which is expected to be the biggest photovoltaic (PV) site in the Baltics.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending EUR 31 million, while the remaining EUR 31 million is covered by Estonian commercial banks Luminor and Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, or SEB.

The EUR-125-million Risti project is located in Laane County, about 65 kilometres southwest of the capital Tallinn. The site is expected to become operational by 2027 when it will be capable of powering more than 80,000 homes annually.

The solar park, built together with local landowner Metsagrupp, is designed to integrate battery storage and wind power at the same location

The financing comes weeks after Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania completed a switch from Russia’s electricity grid to the EU system. The project marks EIB’s first fully merchant renewable energy financing operation in the Baltic market, which revenues will rely solely on sales in the electricity market.