Macquarie Power & Infrastructure Income Fund and SunPower Corp. today announced an agreement for MPT to acquire a 20-megawatt ("MW") solar photovoltaic ("PV") power project (the "Amherstburg Solar Park") in Amherstburg, Ontario to be designed, built and operated on behalf of MPT by SunPower.
The approximate $130 million project will be primarily funded by a syndicate of international lenders with approximately $33 million of equity to be contributed by MPT upon the start of commercial operations, which is anticipated to be in June 2011. When completed, the Amherstburg Solar Park will be one of the largest solar power facilities in Canada and is expected to produce approximately 37,600 megawatt hours ("MWh") of electricity annually, which is enough to power approximately 4,000 homes. Construction of the Amherstburg Solar Park is expected to start immediately using local resources and is expected to create up to 100 jobs in the County of Essex.
"The Amherstburg Solar Park is an excellent addition to MPT's existing portfolio of low-risk, stable power infrastructure assets. It also offers important environmental and local economic benefits while supporting the Province of Ontario's green energy mandate," said Michael Bernstein, president and chief executive officer of MPT. "SunPower's solar power expertise and superior technology, plant design and construction are proven globally. When completed, the Amherstburg Solar Park will contribute to MPT's long-term cash flow stability."
SunPower will complete the Amherstburg Solar Park under a fixed-price engineering, procurement and construction contract. SunPower will also provide operations and maintenance services for the facility under a 20-year contract. Electricity generated by the facility will be sold under the Province of Ontario's Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program to the Ontario Power Authority at a guaranteed price of $420 per MWh for the next 20 years. For the first two years of commercial operations, SunPower will financially support the performance of the facility at the expected production.
"We are delighted to partner with MPT to help Ontario meet its growing electricity demand with clean, locally produced power," said Howard Wenger, president, utilities and power plants, for SunPower. "SunPower's high efficiency photovoltaic technology is competitively priced for electric utility power plant applications, fast to install and reliably delivers clean power during peak demand periods."
SunPower has more than 300 MW of solar PV power plants operating globally today, including the largest operating solar PV plant in the United States, the 25 MW DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Centre in Florida. The Amherstburg Solar Park will use SunPower high-efficiency solar panels, which generate up to 50 percent more electricity than conventional solar panels and up to four times as much power as thin-film solar technology. The Amherstburg Solar Park will also use the proprietary single-axis SunPower® Tracker T20 system, which is engineered to follow the sun during the day, increasing daily energy production by up to 30 percent more than fixed-tilt installations thereby improving the economics of solar power and reducing land-use requirements. SunPower tracking systems have proven their operational performance over a wide range of weather conditions, including winter environments.
Solar power is a 100 percent renewable energy source without noise pollution or harmful emissions. By reducing the purchase of fossil fuel-generated electricity, the electricity generated by the project each year will reduce emissions of carbon dioxide by approximately 27,0031 tonnes, which is the equivalent of the greenhouse gas emissions from more than 5,000 passenger vehicles each year.
"SunPower is very pleased to have completed the financing on this important project, underscoring the bankability of our experience and established technology," said Jean Wilson, vice president and general manager of North American utility and power plants at SunPower. "Today, high-efficiency solar PV technology is competitively priced for power plant applications. Financiers understand that these parks make good business sense while serving local communities with clean, renewable power."
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