SPower buys nine New York solar projects

Salt Lake City’s sPower, a renewable energy independent power producer (IPP), has announced the acquisition of nine solar projects in New York from National Grid Renewables, the renewable energy arm of National Grid’s unregulated division. The portfolio includes projects in Franklin, Jefferson, Chautauqua, Lewis and other counties across Upstate New York.

Six of the nine projects are currently in the early stages of the Article 10 permitting application process. The projects are expected to reach commercial operation in 2023.

The acquisition from National Grid Renewables comes on the heels of sPower’s merger with AES Corp. of Arlington, Virginia, and Alberta Investment Management Corp. of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, to merge sPower with AES’s U.S.-based clean energy development business. AES’s wholly owned clean energy development business includes AES Distributed Energy and a wind development team formerly part of Advance Energy.

“Our merged renewables platform will bring together sPower and AES’ differentiated capabilities in solar, wind and energy storage. Through this platform, we look to accelerate the transition to a carbon-free future, a vision we share with New York State,” said Leo Moreno, president of AES Clean Energy. “We are thrilled to further expand in New York and look forward to continuing to build a platform that is uniquely positioned to help the state realize its goal of 70 percent renewable energy by 2030.”

“As one of the largest project-portfolio acquisitions in sPower’s history, this is a tremendous feat. It was made possible through the hard work of our team and collaboration with National Grid Renewables,” said Brian Callaway, sPower vice president of structured finance and M&A. “This transaction highlights our leadership in strategic acquisitions and partnerships as part of our holistic renewable energy development strategy.”

“We are actively working to develop this portfolio in a way that benefits communities and allows for their input throughout the process,” said Mike Farrell, sPower’s New York-based senior manager of solar development. “As we move forward, we remain committed to local communities and developing the project portfolio in a way that is mutually beneficial.”