LONDON & FREIBERG, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 13, 2005--GE's Energy Financial Services unit, in its third investment in wind power generation in Germany, announced today an agreement to acquire the 55-megawatt Alsleben project from EAB Technology Group. GE's Energy Financial Services unit provided the equity and will secure long-term senior debt financing from local banks. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The Alsleben project, located between Magdeburg and Halle, is one of Germany's largest wind farms and will consist of 37 of GE's 1.5-megawatt turbines. With more than 3,200 of these units, representing more than 4.8 gigawatts, in operation worldwide, GE's 1.5-megawatt machines are among the world's most proven in this class. Construction of the Alsleben project began last week and will include a power substation and upgrade of a transmission line. It is scheduled to enter commercial service by April 2006, selling its electricity to the regional grid operator. The wind farm will annually produce power sufficient for about 30,000 homes and will save approximately 100,000 tons a year in greenhouse gas emissions, compared with equivalent fossil fuel generation.
EAB, the project developer and construction manager, will continue as technical advisor, while GE Energy, one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation and energy delivery technology, will operate and maintain the wind farm.
GE's Energy Financial Services' two earlier German wind acquisitions were the purchases of four wind farms from Denker & Wulf and one from REpower in July. The Alsleben transaction brings GE's Energy Financial Services' total wind capacity in Germany to 154 megawatts.
Andrew Marsden, Managing Director of GE's Energy Financial Services' European operations, said: "The Alsleben acquisition is an excellent fit with our strategy of investing in high-quality energy assets with experienced counterparties in one of our core focus areas, renewable energy." GE's Energy Financial Services' European Executive Director and transaction leader, Mark Jones, added: "The Alsleben transaction combines GE's strengths as a leading supplier of both structured capital and energy technology, and reflects our commitment to invest in Germany's energy market."
Dr. Rainer Sack, manager of the EAB Technology Group, said: "The sale of this developed wind farm to GE's Energy Financial Services unit affirms EAB's position as one of Germany's leading wind project developers. We are delighted to have worked with GE, which served both as the acquirer and supplier of wind turbine generators, operations and maintenance." Andreas Lietzmann, manager of the EAB administration company, Heliotec, said: "The negotiations with GE's Energy Financial Services were most productive, and we look forward to working with them again."
About EAB
The EAB Technology Group (www.eab-group.de) comprises 11 economically independent companies developed from Heliotec Energiesysteme GmbH (Heliotec Energy Systems), founded in 1991.
The EAB Technology Group's activities include: site development, turnkey construction of wind power plants, substations, large PV-Solar plants and Biomass plants, as well as the operation and administration of wind farms and collation of wind factor data, analysis and evaluation. The Group has constructed, in cooperation with local partners, more than 180 wind power plants in Germany. EAB's corporate strategy is to expand its international activities and commission pilot wind farms abroad, e.g. in the Czech Republic, Italy and Brazil, beginning in 2006. Another business is the planning and equipping of decentralized energy supply units, mainly based on wind and solar energy.
About GE's Energy Financial Services unit
GE's Energy Financial Services unit, based in Stamford, Connecticut, USA, with European operations based in London, invests about $3 billion annually in the world's most capital-intensive industry, energy. With more than $12 billion in assets, GE's Energy Financial Services unit offers structured equity, leveraged leasing, partnerships, project finance and broad-based commercial finance to the global energy industry from wellhead to wall socket. GE's Energy Financial Services business has developed a strong track record investing in solar, biomass, hydro, wind and geothermal power, and is growing its portfolio of more than a half-billion dollars in renewable energy assets. For more information, visit www.geenergyfinancialservices.com.
About GE Energy
GE Energy (www.gepower.com) is one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation and energy delivery technology, with 2004 revenues of $17.3 billion. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, GE Energy provides equipment, service and management solutions across the power generation, oil and gas, transmission and distribution, distributed power and energy rental industries. With wind turbine design, manufacturing and assembly facilities in Germany, Spain and the United States, GE Energy's current wind energy portfolio includes wind turbines with rated outputs ranging from 1.5 to 3.6 megawatts, and support services ranging from project development assistance to operation and maintenance. The company's knowledge base includes the development and/or installation of more than 7,500 wind turbines with a total capacity exceeding 6,200 megawatts.
GE
GE (NYSE: GE) is Imagination at Work - a diversified technology, media and financial services company focused on solving some of the world's toughest problems. With products and services ranging from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing and security technology to medical imaging, business and consumer financing, media content and advanced materials, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit www.ge.com.
Contacts
GE's Energy Financial Services
(Stamford, CT, USA)
Ken Koprowski, 203-961-5743
OR
(London, UK)
Will Spiers, +44-0-207-302-6454 or +44-0-797-127-6757
OR
EAB
(Freiberg, Germany)
Andreas Lietzmann, +49-0-3731-2608-0