Sonnedix to buy 136 MW of utility-scale solar in Spain

It has been a particularly busy last 12 months for Sonnedix, which has seen the company significantly increase its solar plant operating capacity and also attract substantial investment from institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The company looks as though it will carry this momentum into 2017, with a significant purchase agreement so early in the year.

The agreement is for Centerbridge Partners’ 136 MW Vela Portfolio in Spain, a country in which solar’s flame has all but been extinguished in the last couple of years. The 136 MW is made up of 43 utility-scale plants that are fully operational and financed, with this deal expected to be finalized in the first quarter of this year.

This move by Sonnedix fits into the company’s goal of expanding its global reach, and will make it the second largest solar operator in Spain in one fell swoop, while also bringing Sonnedix’s global operating capacity to almost 500 MW. The agreement also includes a partnership between Sonnedix and the management team that worked to build and operate the portfolio for future collaboration in acquiring solar assets.

“The acquisition of the Vela Portfolio and the re-entering of the Spanish solar PV market is an important milestone for Sonnedix,” commented Sonnedix’s executive vice president of commercial, Axel Thiemann. “The acquisition comes with an important pipeline, increases our global capacity to almost 500 MW and demonstrates our long-term commitment to continued growth.”

The move continues on from a flurry of investment activity over the last year, which has seen investments in excess of EUR 600 million in new assets, including investments in South Africa, France, and the Caribbean. This is partly due to the partnership that it sprung up with J.P. Morgan Asset Management in December 2014, which has seen investors advised by J.P. Morgan whip up significant shareholdings in the company.