Eni buys 49% of Falck Renewables operating plants in the USA
San Donato Milanese and Milan, 20 December 2019 - Eni and Falck Renewables have signed a strategic agreement for the joint development of renewable energy projects in the United States, which provides for the creation of a joint platform between Eni New Energy US Inc. ("ENE US ”) and Falck Renewables North America Inc. (“ FRNA ”) for the development, construction and financing of new projects from renewable sources such as solar photovoltaic, onshore wind and storage. At the same time, according to the terms of the agreement, FRNA will sell 49% of the shares in the plants currently in operation in the United States to ENE US.
The transaction will allow partners to:
- Create a significant platform for the development of new projects from renewable sources in an evolved market with important growth expectations such as the United States.
- Act through a new company able to cover the development, construction and financing of new projects by combining Falck Renewables' know-how in renewable assets with Eni's technological and financial skills.
- Accelerate the growth process of Eni and Falck Renewables in the country and contribute to the achievement of the respective objectives in terms of installed capacity and green energy generation.
The new platform (the parties will be mutually exclusive in relation to projects greater than 5 MWdc in the United States) based on joint governance has the objective of developing at least 1 GW of projects by the end of 2023. ENE US and FRNA will have to various options to be able to acquire from the incorporated company the projects that can be fully realized and consolidated either by ENE US (100%) or by FRNA (both 100% and with a minority share of ENE US at 49%).
The financing of the joint development company and its proceeds will be shared equally among the partners.
The sale to ENE US of 49% 2 of the shares in FRNA's existing assets concerns a total portfolio of 112,5 MW, consisting of five photovoltaic plants in operation in North Carolina and Massachusetts, one of which, Middleton (Massachusetts) , with 6,6 MWh energy storage. These plants will continue to be managed, controlled and consolidated by FRNA, which will hold 51% of them.
The total value paid by ENE US to FRNA will be approximately $ 70 million at closing, inclusive of a value of a stock of solar panels equal to approximately $ 12,7 million, and will be subject to adjustment in line with practice market. Closing is subject to certain conditions precedent and is expected by the first quarter of 2020.
Luca Cosentino, Executive Vice President of Energy Solutions at Eni, commented: “The agreement with Falck Renewables opens up a new market for Eni, characterized by low risk profile and high fluidity, where we intend to grow very quickly. This collaboration will be able to count on the skills and recognized experience of Falck Renewables, allowing Eni to accelerate plans to grow capacity from renewable sources and laying the foundations for achieving our decarbonisation objectives. "
“We are excited to start collaborating in a targeted way with Eni which, like us, has the objective of contributing to the energy transition and of being a reference player in the renewable energy sector.
We are extremely interested in sharing the skills and ambitions of the two companies by creating an agile development company, focused and with clear objectives in one of the most dynamic and forward-looking markets worldwide ", commented Toni Volpe, CEO of Falck Renewables.