Canada’s Boralex Inc to buy Enel Green Power France SASU

Canada's renewable energy company Boralex Inc yesterday offered to buy Enel Green Power France SASU for C$400 million ($343 million) in cash in a bid to emerge the biggest independent French onshore wind-power producer.

As part of the transaction, Boralex will also temporarily acquire a 10 MW wind farm that is already subject to a sale agreement to a third party, for C$22 million (€15 million) and upon closing of the wind farm transaction, Boralex will recover the C$22 million.

The deal will add to Boralex's French portfolio of 12 wind farms with a total installed capacity of 186 MW located in seven different regions of France, and will increase its overall net installed capacity by 25 per cent to 940 MW.

These assets are backed by power purchase agreements with the remaining average lives of 11 years with state-owned utility Électricité de France (EDF).

The transaction also includes a pipeline of 310 MW of wind and solar energy projects, including 12 projects that are in an advanced stage and have already been granted or have requested building permits. These advanced stage projects could add up to 120 MW of mainly wind power capacity to the net installed base within the next few years.

Toronto Stock Exchange-listed Boralex is a power producer whose core business is to develop and operate renewable energy power stations.

Currently, the Qubec-based company operates an asset base with an installed capacity of more than 750 MW in Canada, France and the Northeastern US.

It is planning to add more than 100 MW of power by the end of 2015 both independently and with Canadian and European partners.