Nov 25 2010
Miles George, Managing Director of Infigen Energy, revealed that the company was holding negotiations with future partners for financing wind power projects in Australia, which may cost more than A$500 million or $492 million per year to construct.
After an annual shareholders’ meeting, George disclosed that plans of adding 200 MW of wind power units every year have been decided, and that the construction would depend on the availability of funding, and whether the company could develop these systems in a lucrative approach, achieving the company’s strict internal return requirement rates. The company would be entirely dependent on debt, institutional investors and a cash outlay of A$174 million.
Infigen’s records indicate that it has plummeted 54% in the current year as compared to the 4.7% drop shown in the S&P/ASX 200 Index. The company had to handle a milieu full of challenges in 2010, inclusive of bad wind conditions, the rising Australian dollar and plunging prices for renewable energy certificates. The current situation indicates that the stock had dropped down by 12% to 64 Australian cents by evening closing in Sydney, with benchmark index rising by 0.3%.
George revealed that the company with headquarters in Sydney has 48 MW capacities of wind energy units under construction, inching towards a target of 160 MW for the year 2011. He mentioned that the company would be operating the projects themselves and retain 50% ownership.
With a goal of generating 20% of the total power output from renewable energy set by Australia, Prime Minister Julia Gillard had formed a committee in the month of September, to assess the available options for introduction of a price on carbon discharges in Australia, where 80% of the electricity production is from coal.
Infigen along with Suntech Power Holdings, a Chinese Solar Panel manufacturer, have put forward plans of constructing solar energy units in the New South Wales State in Australia, and are striving to obtain finance from the A$1.5 billion Solar Flagships Program sponsored by the Government, wherein four solar PV ventures have been chosen by the Government for final selection.
According to George when compared to wind energy, Solar PV was much more expensive, but every year the costs were reducing. If additional incentives were provided, along with state and federal funding, the project economics would improve substantially. The company plans to withdraw around A$100 million of debt over the coming two years, varying from its original target of A$200 million. The Woodlawn wind farm constructed by the company is as per schedule with completion being planned for 2011.