Competitive Power Ventures, ArcLight Capital and GE Energy Financial Services announced they have closed financing for the $842 million CPV Woodbridge Energy Center. GE is providing financing, advanced power generation technology and services for the electric generating facility under construction in Woodbridge, New Jersey — six miles from where Thomas Edison designed the world's first reliable electric light bulb 134 years ago.
The project is owned by Competitive Power Ventures, ArcLight Capital Partners and Toyota Tsusho and will be operated by an affiliate of co-owner ArcLight. It is expected to sell its capacity through 15-year Standard Offer Capacity Agreements (SOCA) with New Jersey utilities, and energy through a hedge.
The CPV Woodbridge project will help turn the site of a former chemical plant into a productive cleaner power generation facility. It will generate enough electricity to power 700,000 homes, helping New Jersey meet its energy demand while improving the state electric system's reliability and environmental profile. Construction of the project begins this quarter, and it is expected to enter commercial operation as soon as the first quarter of 2016.
GE Energy Financial Services served as the administrative agent, and — through GE Capital Markets, Inc. — as CPV Woodbridge Energy Center's primary lead arranger and bookrunner to anchor $561 million in senior secured credit facilities. GE Energy Financial Services and nine banks are providing the credit facilities.
GE's Power & Water business is supplying its FlexEfficiency* 60 combined-cycle technology as well as engineering services for the 700-megawatt, natural gas-powered project. GE also will support the long-term availability of the CPV Woodbridge Energy Center through a 16-year contractual services agreement (CSA).
Included in the project's $260 million GE equipment and services order is the company's FlexEfficiency 60 combined-cycle engineered equipment package. The package comprises two, fast-start 216-megawatt 7F 5-series gas turbine generators, one D-11A steam turbine generator in a "2x1" configuration and two duct-fired, triple-pressure reheat heat recovery steam generators. It also includes the CSA.
The project debt that GE Capital Markets, Inc. arranged is the first sizeable project financing of a greenfield, partial-merchant power project to be broadly syndicated in the traditional project finance bank market in many years. The debt syndication was oversubscribed, reflecting the project's strong fundamentals.
"By providing both capital and technology for the Woodbridge Energy Center, we are applying our skills as banker and builder, drawing on our financial strength, risk management and technical know-how," said Alex Urquhart, president and CEO of GE Energy Financial Services. "These skills are especially important when working with customers with whom we have long-standing relationships – CPV, ArcLight, and Toyota Tsusho."
Competitive Power Ventures, LLC (CPV) is dedicated to increasing America's sustainability; both economically and environmentally. Using domestically-available energy sources, like wind and natural gas, and partnering with host communities to support their tax base and school districts, CPV works to stabilize and improve local and state economies.
ArcLight is one of the leading private equity firms focused on North American energy infrastructure assets. Since its establishment in 2001, ArcLight has invested over $10 billion across multiple energy cycles in more than 100 power, midstream and production assets.