News

ReneSola sells two solar power projects to SWIF

Published

March 21, 2016

Comments

0

Share

Published:

March 21, 2016

Comments:

0

Share

Utility scale systems Nove ECO and MG Solar with capacity of 5 MW and 4.7 MW, respectively, located in Bulgaria, were purchased by Solar World Invest Fund SIF (SWIF), based in Luxembourg, from ReneSola Ltd. The two projects located in Sliven were deemed as long-term assets on the balance sheet since end of 2013, according to the statement by the company based in China. The sale will be booked as disposal of assets, with no direct impact on revenue, the press release adds. The transaction consideration is a combination of cash and assumption of project debt. Such structure of the transaction consideration reflects the company’s focus to reduce its debt, ReneSola said.

SWIF, private equity fund, has investments in medium-sized solar installations around the world. It enables investment in rooftop and ground-mounted photovoltaic plants, the press release said. The fund’s strategy is to generate returns through investments in solar energy and the sale of electricity.

The two sold power plants generated attractive cash flows since they were completed in 2012, said Li  Xianshou, ReneSola’s chief executive officer. “However, our current project development strategy is to build and transfer select projects in order to enhance our cash flow and pay down debt. This sale is another milestone in our strategic transformation into a leading downstream developer. We look forward to additional monetizations this year as many projects are completed from our 641 MW pipeline,” he added.

Founded in 2005 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2008, ReneSola provides energy efficient products. Prior to the sale of the two projects, the company said it repurchased all of its remaining convertible notes, worth USD 5.6 million and due March 15, 2018, upon exercise by note holders of the put option which expired on March 14 this year. ReneSola’s move comes after it reported a drop in revenue of 18% for last year, attributing it to the strategic shift to project development which significantly reduced net loss and operating expenses, while increasing gross margin to 14.7% from 13.4%. Total revenue was USD 1.28 billion and the annual net income fell 10.2% to USD 187.9 million. Projects with the total capacity of 72.8 MW were sold after they were developed by ReneSola.

Total solar module shipments fell 18.9% from 2014 to 1.6 GW while total wafer shipments were up 28.7% at 1.09 GW, the company said.

Related Articles

Croatian Chamber of Economy lex specialis for renewables position paper

Croatian Chamber of Economy asks for lex specialis for renewable energy sector

28 March 2024 - The Association for Renewable Energy Sources produced a position paper identifying obstacles and possible solutions

romania delgaz hydrogen 20HyGrid

Romania successfully tests blending hydrogen in natural gas distribution grid, households

28 March 2024 - E.ON Romania declared success in its test of blending hydrogen into the gas network and using the mixture in households.

IRENA-Global-solar-power-capacity-surpasses-hydropower-in-2023

IRENA: Global solar power capacity surpasses hydropower in 2023

28 March 2024 - The world's renewable electricity capacity additions in 2023 hit a record 473 GW, dominated by China. Solar power became the largest segment in total.

105 MW photovoltaic park in Greece operational with the support of ProCredit Bank

105 MW photovoltaic park in Greece operational with the support of ProCredit Bank

28 March 2024 - A 105 MW photovoltaic park in the Kozani region, North-West Greece, has become fully operational with the support of ProCredit Bank