London—Dentons is pleased to have advised Lietuvos Energija, UAB, the energy company that is 100 per cent owned by the government of Lithuania, on its second Reg S €300 million green bond issue. The deal was given the highest green designation by the Center for International Climate Research (Cicero), which gave the external opinion on the deal's green credentials. The bonds were issued under Lietuvos Energija's €1.5 billion Euro Medium Term Note (EMTN) Programme. Dentons also advised Lietuvos Energija on the establishment of the EMTN Programme and on its debut green bond issue.

Dentons' London-based Capital Markets partner Nick Hayday, who led on the transaction, said, "We are delighted to have worked with Lietuvos Energija once again and the underwriters – BNP Paribas, JP Morgan, and SEB – on this second green bond transaction. This is the first trade from the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region in over two weeks, and we are pleased to see the deal price well in challenging markets."

As the largest fully integrated energy business in Lithuania, Lietuvos Energija continues to build sustainable value in the green energy sector. Green bonds enable the company to diversify its investor base and lengthen the average maturity of its debt. Lietuvos Energija will use part of the €300 million in green financing it has raised through the green bond for further investment in the wind energy sector, co-generation and biomass projects, and improving efficiency of Lithuania's power distribution grid.

Darius Maikštėnas, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Lietuvos Energija, said, "The success of this green bond issue demonstrates strong investor confidence in our new, ambitious LE 2030 strategy which was presented to investors during the roadshow in London, Frankfurt, Paris, and other European cities. In particular, investors supported the green focus of the LE 2030 strategy, as well as its financial reliability, efficient performance, and compliance with the strategic renewable energy objectives of the state. Now, when the global financial markets are less stable compared to the last year, such a successful transaction indicates international recognition and trust in the future of Lietuvos Energija."

Dentons partner David Cohen, head of Dentons' Debt Capital Markets team in London, added, "This deal is a reflection of the significant investments we have made in our international capital markets offering and this high profile transaction is yet another great success for our team. This deal underlines our recent successes acting for underwriters on bond issues by RELX, Finnvera and Sharjah Islamic Bank, and acting for issuers on deals for FirstRand, Faurecia, mBank, Coca-Cola Icecek and Ryanair."

In addition to Nick Hayday, associates Nicholas Yao and Moeen Qayum and trainee Niharika Khimji advised on the transaction. TGS Baltic, led by Vidmantas Drizga, Mantas Gofmanas and Ieva Dosinaite, acted as Lithuanian law advisers to the company.

About Dentons

Redefining possibilities. Together, everywhere. For more information visit dentons.com