RENO, Nev., Nov. 14, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ormat Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: ORA ) announced today that a key milestone was reached in the 30-megawatt (MW) expansion of its McGinness Hills geothermal power plant complex located in Lander County, Nevada. NV Energy and Ormat signed an amendment to the existing McGinness Hills power purchase agreement (PPA) allowing Ormat to sell 63.7 MW (net average annual capacity) from the complex. Under the amendment, a new energy rate of $85.58/MWh with a 1 percent annual escalator will be set for the entire complex once Phase II enters commercial operation. The amendment is subject to approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada.
"The favorable performance of the reservoir and the PPA amendment give Ormat the ability to further expand this geothermal site," explained Yoram Bronicki, president and chief operating officer at Ormat.
"Phase I of our McGinness Hills geothermal power plant has been in commercial operation since June 2012 and the strength of the reservoir allowed the power plant to consistently produce more energy than what was contracted in the original PPA. We are eager to continue development at the site which we hope to complete in mid-2015, as well as our work with NV Energy to deliver more clean, renewable power to Nevada."
The McGinness Hills power plant received favorable project financing terms from the Department of Energy's loan guarantee program under section 1705. The proposed expansion was approved by the lenders, John Hancock Life Insurance Company and the U.S. Department of Energy, and is covered under the existing financing structure. The economics of the expanded power plant and the potential availability of government incentives for projects that start construction before the end of 2013 enabled Ormat to provide a reduced power price to electricity customers in Nevada.
About Ormat Technologies, Inc.
With over four decades of experience, Ormat Technologies, Inc. is a leading geothermal company and the only vertically integrated company solely engaged in geothermal and recovered energy generation (REG). The company owns, operates, designs, manufactures and sells geothermal and REG power plants primarily based on the Ormat Energy Converter—a power generation unit that converts low-, medium- and high-temperature heat into electricity. With over 82 U.S. patents, Ormat's power solutions have been refined and perfected under the most grueling environmental conditions. Ormat has over 500 employees in the United States and about 600 overseas. Ormat's flexible, modular solutions for geothermal power and REG are ideal for the vast range of resource characteristics. The company has engineered, manufactured and constructed power plants, which it currently owns or has supplied to utilities and developers worldwide, totaling approximately 1600 MW of gross capacity. Ormat's current generating portfolio of 595 MW (net) is spread globally in the U.S., Guatemala and Kenya.
Ormat's Safe Harbor Statement
Information provided in this press release may contain statements relating to current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about future events that are "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements generally relate to Ormat's plans, objectives and expectations for future operations and are based upon its management's current estimates and projections of future results or trends. Actual future results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, see "Risk Factors" as described in Ormat Technologies, Inc.'s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 11, 2013.
These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Ormat Technologies Contact: Dita Bronicki CEO 775-356-9029 Investor Relations Contact: Todd Fromer/Rob Fink KCSA Strategic Communications 212-896-1215 (Fromer)/212-896-1206 (Fink) /
