Florida utility buys 102.5-MW biomass plant

A consortium including US private investment firm Starwood Energy Group Global LLC has offloaded a 102.5-MW biomass power plant in Florida in a deal worth USD 750 million (EUR 646.7m).

The facility was previously owned by Gainesville Renewable Energy Center (GREC), a partnership between Energy Management Inc, private merchant energy company BayCorp Holdings, Starwood Energy and green energy design-builder Fagen Inc. Following the deal, it was sold to Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU), GREC said on Wednesday.

“The sale was prompted by the recognition that both GREC and GRU could unlock enhanced value through this transaction,” explained Jim Gordon, GREC’s CEO.

The wood-fired biomass plant, situated in Gaines­ville, Alachua County, has been operational since 2013 and is selling its output and environmental attributes to GRU under a 30-year power purchase agreement. It generates 788,440 MWh of electricity annually, or enough to supply 70,000 local homes. The facility was constructed at a cost of almost USD 500 million.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.862)

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