Shearman & Sterling represented the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in connection with the extension of two secured loans totaling approximately $640 million to the Tualatin Valley Water District and the City of Hillsboro in Oregon for the Willamette Water Project. The loans, issued under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program, will fund investments in the regional water supply system, including intake facilities, over 30 miles of pipes, a water treatment plant and two storage reservoirs. These investments are intended to provide reliable, quality drinking water to 400,000 residents and businesses in Washington County, Oregon. Total project costs are projected to be approximately $1.3 billion.

The loans to the Tualatin Valley Water District and the City of Hillsboro mark the first time that the WIFIA program has provided financing for two individual borrowers partnering on a joint project. Shearman & Sterling has served as counsel to USEPA for nearly half of the loans closed to date under the WIFIA program’s initial two rounds of funding. Last month, USEPA received 51 requests for $6.6 billion in WIFIA loans by potential borrowers under the program’s third round of funding.