The two wind farms include a 90MW project located in Pennsylvania and 29MW project located in New Hampshire. While the wind project in Pennsylvania is supported by a 15 year power purchase agreement (PPA), the other has two 20-year PPAs.
Details about the parties from which the wind farms are being acquired were not given. The acquisition is subject to closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
TransAlta estimates the cost of the two wind farms to be about $240m of which 70% will be funded this year and the remaining 30% will be provided in the next.
TransAlta Renewables president John Kousinioris said: “This acquisition demonstrates our commitment to grow and diversify our cash flows through the addition of long-term contracted assets with high quality counterparties, and expands our presence in the United States.”
The two wind farms are expected to enter commercial operations in the second half of next year.
The company plans to fund the acquisition and construction costs of the wind farms through its existing liquidity and tax equity.
It said that the acquisition "aligns with TransAlta’s and TransAlta Renewables’ strategy of acquiring contracted renewable power generation assets that provide stable cash flow through long-term power purchase agreements with creditworthy counterparties."
The Canadian company is one of the largest publicly traded renewable independent power producers. Its asset platform includes interests in 18 wind farms, 13 hydroelectric facilities and seven natural gas generation facilities and one natural gas pipeline.
The facilities are located British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick along with one in the US of Wyoming and in Western Australia.
Image: TransAlta’s two US wind farms will start operations next year. Photo: Courtesy of Michel Meynsbrughen/FreeImages.com.
