Allens acts on first NAIF financing

Allens has acted for Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) on its first financing, the $16.8 million financing of the Onslow Marine Support Base in Western Australia.

The Onslow Marine Support Base will provide supply and support services for various onshore and offshore businesses in the Carnarvon Basin including logistics, fuel supply, waste management and construction and maintenance companies.

This is the first project to be funded by NAIF, which has $5 billion available over five years to fund investment in infrastructure that benefits northern Australia.

Under the concessional long-term financing arrangements, NAIF will provide funding to the state of Western Australia, which will on-lend the funds as the lender of record. The financing includes intercreditor arrangements negotiated with the other lender.

The project drew on Allens' unparalleled experience in innovative and complex project finance and government concessional loans, with the firm helping to establish a framework for NAIF's future financings.

The innovative financing required detailed consideration of the NAIF lending structure and constitutional limitations for Commonwealth lending, as well as ensuring NAIF's investment criteria were met.

'The financing of the Onslow Marine Supply Base is a significant development for northern Australia and for government financing structures more broadly,' said lead Partner Scott McCoy .

'This will be the first of many important projects financed by NAIF. We look forward to continuing our work with NAIF as it deploys the rest of its capital across northern Australia.'

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