Southern Company Buys Solar Project Stake From SunPower

Southern Power, a subsidiary of leading energy utility firm Southern Company (NYSE:SO) , reported that it has bought a controlling equity interest in the 102-megawatt (MW) Henrietta Solar Project from U.S. solar power developer, SunPower Corporation (SPWR) for an undisclosed amount. SunPower will be retaining the remaining interest in the site.

Henrietta Solar Project is the first joint venture between the two companies. SunPower, which has developed, designed and constructed the solar plant, began working on the project in June last year and expects it to be fully operational by the end of 2016.

The work on the Henrietta Solar Project, once completed, will cover 670 acres and will provide enough clean energy to meet the power needs of 24,000 local households. This solar project will be the firm’s 11^th acquisition in California. This project will combine several unique innovations, such as robotic cleaners for the solar panels that use 75% less water than traditional cleaning methods. It will also help in improving the system’s performance by up to 15%.

Southern Power’s existing customer – Pacific Gas and Electric – will purchase the electricity generated by the solar plant under a 20-year power purchase agreement. It will also buy all associated renewable energy credits.

Headquartered in Atlanta, GA, Southern Company is one of the largest generators of electricity in the nation, serving both regulated and competitive markets across southeastern U.S. Additionally, Southern Company owns all of the common stock of Southern Power, which currently has more than 2.1 GW of renewable generating capacity under its belt, comprising 28 solar, wind and biomass projects.

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Southern Power has been focusing its wholesale business expansion either by acquiring power generating units or building new plants. The recent purchase corroborates this aim.

Southern Company currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold), implying that the stock will perform in line with the broader U.S. equity market over the next one to three months.

Some better-ranked players from the utility sector are Korea Electric Power Corp. (NYSE:KEP) , RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) and Spark Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPKE) . All these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).