NextEra Energy Partners to Acquire 1,388 MW Renewables Projects

NextEra Energy Partners announced that it has entered into an agreement with a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC to acquire a geographically diverse portfolio of 11 wind and solar projects, collectively consisting of approximately 1,388 megawatts (MW). In conjunction with the acquisition, NextEra Energy Partners also has entered into a $750 million convertible equity portfolio financing with a fund managed by BlackRock Global Energy & Power Infrastructure.

“The acquisition of these high-quality, contracted renewable energy assets demonstrates the continued execution of our plan to expand NextEra Energy Partners’ portfolio for the benefit of our unitholders,” said Jim Robo, chairman and chief executive officer. “This transaction replaces the Canadian portfolio that we divested earlier this year with higher-yielding assets in the U.S. that benefit from the lower effective corporate tax rate and longer tax shield. In addition, the transaction supports growing limited partner unit distributions in a manner consistent with our previously stated expectations of 12 to 15 percent per year through at least 2023. The portfolio financing is expected to be a very attractive, low-cost equity-like product for NextEra Energy Partners. With the right to convert at least 70 percent of the portfolio financing into NextEra Energy Partners’ common units, the financing provides additional third-party confirmation of our growth outlook and high-quality, long-term contracted portfolio backed by strong counterparty credits. Without the need to sell common equity until 2020 at the earliest, other than modest at-the-market issuances, today’s transaction further enhances our financing flexibility. We continue to believe that NextEra Energy Partners is as well-positioned as it’s ever been, offering a best-in-class investor value proposition with growth prospects that remain as strong as ever.”