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Released March 12, 2024 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--After a rocky 2023, executives at Algonquin Power & Utilities Corporation (NYSE:AQN) (Oakville, Ontario) see 2024 as "a transition year" in which the company will sell off its renewables business in order to become "a pure-play regulated utility." But Algonquin continues to develop wind and solar projects, despite not yet announcing a buyer, and expects their sale to be a net benefit to the company in the long run. Industrial Info is tracking more than $3.5 billion worth of active and planned projects from Algonquin.
"We launched the sale process with potential buyers in the fourth quarter and are pleased with the level of buyer interest that we've seen in our renewables platform," said Chris Huskilson, the interim chief executive officer of Algonquin, in a quarterly earnings-related conference call. "We continue to target a potential transaction announcement around mid-2024 and closing later in the year."
Darren Myers, Algonquin's chief financial officer, later added: "When we did the strategic review, the realization was [that] we can't invest as much as the opportunity is in that business. So, the pursuit of selling it is so that we can spend more on the regulated business and a buyer can spend more on the renewables business, because it has such a strong platform and a lot of opportunities."
Regarding the sales process itself, however, Huskilson chose not to provide any specific guidance: "It's pretty hard to give any color at this point. We are in a confidential process, and I think we were pretty clear with folks [in a previous announcement] that we wouldn't be able to comment. But the one thing we did say was that 'no news is good news,' and you're not hearing any news."
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing Algonquin's active and planned renewable-energy projects, by state or province.
Despite the unclear future of its renewables business, Algonquin says it has roughly 300 megawatts (MW) worth of solar projects in development, with about 1,660 MW worth of renewables projects added to the company's portfolio in 2023. At least two major solar projects from Algonquin are under construction and set to wrap up later this year: the $187 million Clearview Solar Plant in Woodstock, Ohio, which will use 360,000 photovoltaic (PV) panels from First Solar Incorporated (NASDAQ:FSLR) (Tempe, Arizona) to generate 144 MW; and the $75 million Carvers Creek Solar Plant in Gloucester, Virginia, which will use 170,000 PV modules from NEXTracker (NASDAQ:NXT) (Fremont, California) to generate 150 MW.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can read detailed reports on the Clearview and Carvers Creek projects. First Solar, which is providing PV panels to several other Algonquin projects, plans to build out its solar panel-manufacturing capacity in 2024, following strong sales in 2023; for more information, see February 29, 2024, article - First Solar Plans Up to $1.9 Billion in Capex for 2024.
Following completion of the Carvers Creek project, which is expected this summer, Algonquin expects to begin construction on a $150 million Phase II, which would add 100 MW to the facility's output via NEXTracker modules. As currently envisioned, the expansion would wrap up in third-quarter 2025. Subscribers can learn more from a detailed project report.
Other proposed renewable-energy projects from Algonquin remain in their planning phases, where their fates may be up in the air, depending on what choices any new owner makes. The company had looked to begin construction as early as 2025 on the Riverbend Windfarm in Port Sanilac, Michigan, which would generate 300 MW from 50 turbines, and a solar-BESS facility in Minonk, Illinois, which is designed to feature 200 MW of generation and a 50 MW battery energy-storage system (BESS). Subscribers can learn more about these proposals in detailed reports for the Port Sanilac and Minonk projects.
Liberty Utilities Company, an Algonquin subsidiary, is seeking permits to add a solar unit and BESS unit at its Kings Point Ridge Windfarm in Golden City, Missouri, which would have 10-MW and 5-MW capacities, respectively. The windfarm, which began operations in 2020, generates 150 MW from 60 turbines. Subscribers can learn more from detailed reports on the proposed solar and BESS units, and read a detailed plant profile.
Amid its step back from renewables, Algonquin also is at work taking down some of its former coal-fired power plants. Liberty Utilities began the $30 million demolition and dismantlement of its power station in Asbury, Missouri, last summer, and expects to finish the process toward the end of the second quarter. The Asbury plant generated 225 MW from coal, using two condensing steam turbines and a wet-bottom boiler. Subscribers can learn more from a detailed project report and plant profile.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and planned projects from Algonquin.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
"We launched the sale process with potential buyers in the fourth quarter and are pleased with the level of buyer interest that we've seen in our renewables platform," said Chris Huskilson, the interim chief executive officer of Algonquin, in a quarterly earnings-related conference call. "We continue to target a potential transaction announcement around mid-2024 and closing later in the year."
Darren Myers, Algonquin's chief financial officer, later added: "When we did the strategic review, the realization was [that] we can't invest as much as the opportunity is in that business. So, the pursuit of selling it is so that we can spend more on the regulated business and a buyer can spend more on the renewables business, because it has such a strong platform and a lot of opportunities."
Regarding the sales process itself, however, Huskilson chose not to provide any specific guidance: "It's pretty hard to give any color at this point. We are in a confidential process, and I think we were pretty clear with folks [in a previous announcement] that we wouldn't be able to comment. But the one thing we did say was that 'no news is good news,' and you're not hearing any news."
Click on the image at right for a graph detailing Algonquin's active and planned renewable-energy projects, by state or province.Despite the unclear future of its renewables business, Algonquin says it has roughly 300 megawatts (MW) worth of solar projects in development, with about 1,660 MW worth of renewables projects added to the company's portfolio in 2023. At least two major solar projects from Algonquin are under construction and set to wrap up later this year: the $187 million Clearview Solar Plant in Woodstock, Ohio, which will use 360,000 photovoltaic (PV) panels from First Solar Incorporated (NASDAQ:FSLR) (Tempe, Arizona) to generate 144 MW; and the $75 million Carvers Creek Solar Plant in Gloucester, Virginia, which will use 170,000 PV modules from NEXTracker (NASDAQ:NXT) (Fremont, California) to generate 150 MW.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can read detailed reports on the Clearview and Carvers Creek projects. First Solar, which is providing PV panels to several other Algonquin projects, plans to build out its solar panel-manufacturing capacity in 2024, following strong sales in 2023; for more information, see February 29, 2024, article - First Solar Plans Up to $1.9 Billion in Capex for 2024.
Following completion of the Carvers Creek project, which is expected this summer, Algonquin expects to begin construction on a $150 million Phase II, which would add 100 MW to the facility's output via NEXTracker modules. As currently envisioned, the expansion would wrap up in third-quarter 2025. Subscribers can learn more from a detailed project report.
Other proposed renewable-energy projects from Algonquin remain in their planning phases, where their fates may be up in the air, depending on what choices any new owner makes. The company had looked to begin construction as early as 2025 on the Riverbend Windfarm in Port Sanilac, Michigan, which would generate 300 MW from 50 turbines, and a solar-BESS facility in Minonk, Illinois, which is designed to feature 200 MW of generation and a 50 MW battery energy-storage system (BESS). Subscribers can learn more about these proposals in detailed reports for the Port Sanilac and Minonk projects.
Liberty Utilities Company, an Algonquin subsidiary, is seeking permits to add a solar unit and BESS unit at its Kings Point Ridge Windfarm in Golden City, Missouri, which would have 10-MW and 5-MW capacities, respectively. The windfarm, which began operations in 2020, generates 150 MW from 60 turbines. Subscribers can learn more from detailed reports on the proposed solar and BESS units, and read a detailed plant profile.
Amid its step back from renewables, Algonquin also is at work taking down some of its former coal-fired power plants. Liberty Utilities began the $30 million demolition and dismantlement of its power station in Asbury, Missouri, last summer, and expects to finish the process toward the end of the second quarter. The Asbury plant generated 225 MW from coal, using two condensing steam turbines and a wet-bottom boiler. Subscribers can learn more from a detailed project report and plant profile.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active and planned projects from Algonquin.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
