Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, a leading investor in climate change solutions, today announced a newly-formed partnership with a subsidiary of ENGIE S.A., the largest independent power producer (IPP) and energy efficiency services provider in the world, that will own a 2.3-GW portfolio of wind and utility-scale solar assets.
The partnership combines Hannon Armstrong’s extensive experience in providing long-term investment for climate solutions with the best-in-class development and operations experience of ENGIE, a global energy and services leader dedicated to accelerating the deployment of clean, affordable, innovative and resilient energy solutions.
On commissioning, the 2.3-GW portfolio will be comprised of 1.8 GW of onshore wind and 0.5 GW of utility-scale solar projects (13 projects in total) located in five states. Hannon Armstrong will participate in the cash flows from the operations of this diversified portfolio of renewable energy projects, while ENGIE will retain a controlling share in the portfolio and continue to manage the assets.
“We have a common mission to accelerate the rapid adoption of climate change solutions, and we are pleased to partner with ENGIE once again with this new investment that adds significant scale and diversity to our portfolio,” said Hannon Armstrong Chairman and CEO Jeffrey W. Eckel. “Continuing to build a programmatic investment platform allows both firms to make the investment process more aerodynamic and cost-effective for ENGIE’s ultimate customers,” added Eckel.
“The U.S. is a key growth market for our renewables business, where we are accelerating fast, from 0 MW in 2018 to 2 GW that should be commissioned in 2020. We have a strong pipeline of opportunities and a solid development and operational platform to grow from. We are delighted to have partnered with Hannon Armstrong, a company solely dedicated to investments in climate change solutions,” said Gwenaelle Avice-Huet, Executive Vice-President responsible for ENGIE Renewables business line and CEO of ENGIE North America.
Highlights
- The portfolio includes nine onshore wind and four utility-scale solar projects located in five states, representing 2.3 GW of gross generating capacity in aggregate. Under the agreement, Hannon Armstrong will take immediate ownership of 49% of 663 MW from four operating onshore wind projects. The remaining 1.6 GW of projects (five onshore wind and four utility-scale solar PV projects) currently under construction will be transferred into the partnership upon commissioning.
- Assets are located in geographically diversified wind and solar resource regions and wholesale power markets, including Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), PJM Interconnection (PJM), and Southwest Power Pool (SPP).
- With a weighted average contract life of 13 years, the portfolio’s cash flows are contracted with highly creditworthy off-takers who enjoy a weighted average credit rating of A+, including Amazon, Allianz, Ingersoll Rand, Microsoft,T Mobile, Target, Walmart, and Xcel Energy.
- Once fully funded, this portfolio is expected to significantly increase and diversify Hannon Armstrong’s balance sheet portfolio and support continued growth in recurring Net Investment Income.
- With a CarbonCount score of 2.01 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) reduced annually per $1,000 invested, Hannon Armstrong’s equity investment will avoid an estimated 1.1 million metric tons of CO2 in the first year of operations, equivalent to the CO2 emissions from 125,000 U.S. homes’ annual energy use.
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