HelioSage Energy announced Aug. 29 the sale, without naming the buyer, of a 77 MW (dc)/60 MW (ac) portfolio of development-stage solar facilities in North Carolina.
The portfolio is made up of 12 ground-mounted solar projects sited in eastern North Carolina. Once constructed, the projects will sell power under Power Purchase Agreements with either Duke Energy Progress or the North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency (NCEMPA).
“This is a major milestone for HelioSage Energy,” said CEO Chris Walmsley. “As a greenfield development firm specializing in originating projects and delivering those assets to strategic buyers and owners, a transaction such as this is a meaningful accomplishment, and a validation of our business model. It’s also emblematic of the value we seek to create for our partners in these projects, including land owners, utilities, investors, and the solar supply chain.”
The portfolio is comprised of projects originated, sited, designed, and permitted by HelioSage. The company also secured Power Purchase Agreements for each of the projects, utilizing standard contracts made available to qualifying facilities by both Duke Energy Progress and NCEMPA. In total, the portfolio is expected to generate an estimated 100 million kilowatt-hours annually.
All 12 facilities will be placed in service this year, with five now under construction. The company also announced it is developing a second, similarly-sized portfolio, which will transact and construct before the end of 2015.
“It is gratifying to see the first HelioSage portfolio in North Carolina progress to construction phase, with a follow up portfolio right behind it,” said Walmsley. “2014 has been an exciting year for our firm and North Carolina has been an important part of the story.”
HelioSage Energy is a solar energy development firm with a national pipeline including more than 300 MW of executed Power Purchase Agreements. The principals of HelioSage have developed and financed 540 MW of renewable energy facilities, representing over $1bn in invested capital.
HelioSage LLC notified the North Carolina Utilities Commission in an Aug. 22 filing that it has sold five solar projects, each with approved certificates of public convenience and necessity with the commission, to Carolina Energy Partners II LLC. Each project is around 5 MW in size. At this point, construction of these solar projects has not begun, HelioSage said in the Aug. 22 notice to the commission. The HelioSage LLC contact listed in commission documents is Nelson Teague Jr., a co-founder of HelioSage Energy.
