ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that it has agreed to invest in the Cotton Plains Wind/Solar Hybrid Power Generation Project (hereinafter the “Project”), which has a generation capacity of 217 megawatts and is under construction in Texas in the United States.
The Project was originated by Apex Clean Energy (headquartered in Virginia, the United States, hereinafter “Apex”) in Texas, one of the most notable areas in the United States in terms of wind power potential. Once constructed, the Project will consist of 84 wind power generators, each with a capacity of 2.4 megawatts, as well as a 15.4 megawatt (alternating current) solar power plant. Commercial operation will start in the first half of 2017 and will produce enough electricity for approximately 76,000 ordinary households in the United States. The generated electricity will be mainly supplied to the Texas power market. ITOCHU will take part in the Project through a new subsidiary that will be established together with other investors, including Northleaf Capital Partners.
ITOCHU has been working actively to expand the power generation business in many parts of the world, particularly in North America. ITOCHU is involved in the management and development of more than 15 power generation plants in the United States through Tyr Energy Inc. (hereinafter the “Tyr Energy”), a wholly owned subsidiary, and this is the third investment in a wind power project in the United States for ITOCHU and Tyr Energy. ITOCHU also runs a service business in the United States, operating and maintaining (hereinafter the “O&M”) power plants through NAES Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary. NAES provides the O&M for more than 130 power plants, mainly in the United States, and generation capacity of 35,000 megawatts in total as one of the largest O&M service providers in the world. ITOCHU continues to diversify its power related business with a focus on generating power and providing services, seeking to further enhance the value of the portfolio companies.
About Apex Clean Energy
Apex Clean Energy builds, owns, and operates utility-scale wind and solar power facilities. Last year, Apex completed 1,042 megawatts of new wind capacity, enough clean energy to supply the population of a city the size of Boston or San Francisco each year for the life of the facilities. With a team of over 200 professionals and the nation’s largest wind energy project pipeline, Apex is a leader in the transition to a clean energy future. For more information, visit www.apexcleanenergy.com.
