Ormat to take control of 14.8-MW geothermal plant in Guadeloupe

US-based Ormat Technologies Inc (NYSE:ORA) said on Monday it plans to take control of a firm that owns and operates a 14.75-MW geothermal power plant in Guadeloupe Island.

More specifically, Ormat has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to purchase, gradually, an 85% stake in Geothermie Bouillante SA (GB) from a unit of France’s Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres (BRGM). The pact values the entire company at about EUR 52 million (USD 56.3m).

Apart from the existing Bouillante geothermal power facility on the island, GB also holds licences with a total additional potential capacity of up to 30 MW, all located in this French territory in the Caribbean.

Ormat plans to modify the existing equipment at the Bouillante plant and to further develop the project to its full 45-MW potential by 2021. The facility currently has a power purchase agreement (PPA) with France’s EDF and a new one with a term of 15 years and improved energy rates is in the works.

The transaction is seen to be completed by May 2016 and to be immediately accretive to Ormat’s earnings per share.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.083)

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!