NextEra Energy is selling a 90% stake in a 1GW renewables portfolio and a 100% interest in a solar-storage project.
The sales, worth approximately $1.3bn in total proceeds, including tax equity, are to NextEra Energy Partners and a consortium of private infrastructure investors led by KKR in two separate transactions.
The investors are purchasing a 50% equity interest in the portfolio and NextEra Energy Partners is purchasing a 40% equity interest.
NextEra Energy Partners is also buying a 100% of the interest in Wilmot Solar Energy Center, a project company that owns a 100MW solar and 30MW storage generation plant in Arizona.
NextEra Energy will have a right of first offer on the investors’ 50% equity interest in the portfolio.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2020.
The portfolio, in which NextEra Energy Resources will retain a 10% equity interest, includes the 200MW Blue Summit 3 farm in Texas, the 200MW Ponderosa wind farm in Oklahoma, the 100MW Saint Solar plant in Arizona and the 300MW Soldier Creek wind farm in Kansas.
The sale proceeds will be redeployed into new wind, solar and battery storage “growth opportunities”, including NextEra Energy’s 15GW renewables backlog.
Over the operating life of the assets, NextEra Energy Resources is also expected to receive ongoing annual fee income of approximately $7m in year one and escalating thereafter, from the investors for operations, maintenance and management services.
NextEra chairman and CEO Jim Robo said: “These transactions are expected to generate significant value for NextEra Energy shareholders.
“In addition to generating attractive ongoing fee income, the sale provides an opportunity to take advantage of the robust demand for high-quality, long-term contracted renewable energy assets and efficiently recycle approximately $1.3bn in total capital that can be redeployed into new renewables growth opportunities.
“The transactions highlight the value of NextEra Energy Resources’ best-in-class development platform and position us well to continue to capitalize on what we believe to be the best renewables development environment in our history.”