TEANECK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hudson Clean Energy Partners (“Hudson”), a leading private equity firm specializing in renewable energy, and Sky Solar Holdings, Ltd. (NASDAQ: SKYS) (“Sky Solar” or the “Company”), a global developer, owner, and operator of solar parks, announced a new solar project partnership to acquire, construct, and own utility scale and commercial and industrial projects in the United States. This expansion of the organizations’ 2015 collaboration in Latin America and Japan will make use of the existing capital commitment of up to $100 million from Hudson.
The first asset in the joint venture is a 22 MW, 23-project portfolio of operating commercial and small utility-scale solar PV projects that sell power to businesses, municipalities and utilities located in California and Massachusetts. The majority of these projects, which were acquired from a third party, came online in 2012 and have remaining power purchase agreement terms of more than 15 years on average. Hudson and Sky Solar are also partnering to construct and jointly own 82 MW of utility solar projects in Uruguay, which are expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2017.
“Extending our reach into the North American market is a logical next step for our organizations as we seek to build a stable portfolio of renewable projects in key markets around the world,” said Neil Z. Auerbach, founder and managing partner of Hudson. “We will continue to pursue attractive investments in lucrative regions and anticipate a fruitful, long-term collaboration with Sky Solar.”
“Our strategic partnership with Hudson will only grow stronger as we continue to expand to the North American market,” said Sanjay Shrestha, chief investment officer of Sky Solar and president of Sky Capital Americas. “We look forward to building on our success and expanding access to renewable energy across the globe.”
About Hudson Clean Energy Partners
Hudson Clean Energy is a private equity and infrastructure firm dedicated exclusively to investing in renewable power and clean energy. The New Jersey-based firm was founded in 2007, and makes privately negotiated investments in infrastructure platforms, focused on the development, construction and operation of power plants, direct investments in power projects, as well as investments in the high-growth, asset-based, capital intensive segments of value chain companies that have manufacturing or servicing business. Hudson’s investment expertise spans across a variety of subsectors within the renewable energy industry including, solar and wind energy, biofuels, biomass, geothermal energy, energy efficiency and storage.
About Sky Solar Holdings, Ltd.
Sky Solar is a global independent power producer (“IPP”) that develops, owns and operates solar parks and generates revenue primarily by selling electricity. Since its inception, Sky Solar has focused on the downstream solar market and has developed projects in Asia, South America, Europe, North America and Africa. The Company's broad geographic reach and established presence across key solar markets are significant differentiators that provide global opportunities and mitigate country-specific risks. Sky Solar aims to establish operations in select geographies with highly attractive solar radiation, regulatory environments, power pricing, land availability, financial access and overall power market trends. As a result of its focus on the downstream photovoltaic segment, Sky Solar is technology agnostic and is able to customize its solar parks based on local environmental and regulatory requirements. As of June 30, 2016, the Company had developed 276 solar parks with an aggregate capacity of 259.1 MW and owned and operated 133.1 MW of solar parks.
Safe-Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements constitute “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “will,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “future,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “estimates” and similar statements. Among other things, the quotations from management in this press release and the Company's operations and business outlook contain forward-looking statements. Such statements involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to the following: the reduction, modification or elimination of government subsidies and economic incentives; global and local risks related to economic, regulatory, social and political uncertainties; resources we may need to familiarize ourselves with the regulatory regimes, business practices, governmental requirements and industry conditions as we enter into new markets; our ability to successfully implement our on-going strategic review to unlock shareholder value; global liquidity and the availability of additional funding options; the delay between making significant upfront investments in the Company's solar parks and receiving revenue; expansion of the Company's business into the U.S. and China; risk associated with the Company's limited operating history, especially with large-scale IPP solar parks; risk associated with development or acquisition of additional attractive IPP solar parks to grow the Company's project portfolio; and competition. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Sky Solar's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.