Deriva Energy marks milestone with successful closure of Spanish Peaks Solar acquisition in Colorado

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Jan 22, 2024, 13:32 ET

Construction begins on 140-megawatt project to serve members of Tri-State.

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Deriva Energy, a Charlotte-based independent renewable generation developer, owner, and operator, proudly announces the successful acquisition of Spanish Peaks Solar, a 140-megawatt (MW) solar project in Las Animas County, Colo.

Deriva Energy acquired the solar project from JUWI Inc. (JUWI), a global solar power developer.

This strategic addition not only signifies Deriva's commitment to providing economic solutions for the energy transition, but also positions the company as a key contributor to the clean energy landscape in the region. With the addition of Spanish Peaks, Deriva Energy will own and operate 388 MW in Colorado. It will provide energy to Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association through a 19-year power purchase agreement.

"We are excited to announce the successful acquisition of this promising solar project," said Chris Fallon, President of Deriva Energy. "This project underscores our commitment to implementing solutions for a viable energy future. We are thrilled to collaborate with JUWI again in Colorado to create job opportunities, provide clean energy solutions for Tri-State customers, and support the economic growth of Las Animas County."

JUWI is responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction of the project. The solar modules will be procured by Deriva. Spanish Peaks commenced construction and is expected to come online in Q4 2024. During peak construction, the project will create approximately 250 jobs. Deriva Energy will own the plant and share operations and maintenance responsibilities with JUWI.

"As a Colorado-based company, JUWI is delighted to be executing another project in our backyard," said Steve Ihnot, Chief Financial Officer of JUWI. "We are especially pleased with the relationships that we have built with so many transaction counterparties, as Spanish Peaks represents repeat business with Deriva, Tri-State G&T, Las Animas County, the landowners, and many of the subcontractors and vendors."

With an expected capacity of 140 MW, the project will generate enough electricity annually to serve the equivalent energy needs of roughly 38,000 homes, advancing the Tri-State membership's clean energy goals. Tri-State is adding 595 megawatts of solar to its resource portfolio in 2024-2025, including Spanish Peaks Solar.

"Tri-State's members benefit from clean, low-cost solar power, including the 140-MW Spanish Peaks Solar, and 50% of the energy our members use will come from clean energy in 2025," said Duane Highley, Tri-State CEO. "We greatly value the teams at Deriva Energy and JUWI as they help support our mission to deliver reliable, affordable and responsible power."

The project is located in the service territory of Tri-State member San Isabel Electric Association.

Deriva Energy is one of nation's leading clean energy generation providers, with owned and operating assets producing enough clean electricity to power over 1 million homes annually.

Deriva Energy Deriva Energy is an established leader in clean energy, with 5,900 megawatts of operating and under construction wind, utility scale solar and storage assets across the U.S. Formerly known as Duke Energy Renewables, Deriva is a portfolio company of Brookfield, one of the world's largest owners and operators of renewable power and climate transition assets. Deriva is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. For more information, visit: www.DerivaEnergy.com.

Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association Tri-State is a power supply cooperative of 45 members, operating on a not-for-profit basis, including 42 utility electric distribution cooperative and public power district members in four states. Together with our members, we deliver reliable, affordable and responsible power to more than a million electricity consumers across nearly 200,000 square miles of the West. Visit www.tristate.coop.

JUWI The JUWI Group has been one of the leading specialists of renewable energy for nearly 30 years and offers complete project development as well as other services related to the planning, construction, and operational management of renewable energy plants. The main business areas include projects with wind and solar energy as well as hybrid systems with storage for industrial applications.

JUWI employs more than 1,300 people worldwide. Outside of Germany, the company has subsidiaries in Italy, Greece, South Africa, the USA (Colorado-based HQ), Japan, Australia, India, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Singapore. To date, JUWI has implemented more than 1,250 wind energy plants with a capacity of more than 3,000 megawatts at approximately 250 locations worldwide in the wind segment. In the solar segment, the company has executed on approximately 2,000 PV plants with a total capacity of nearly 3,850 megawatts. JUWI's operations management group services wind energy and photovoltaic plants with a capacity of more than 4,100 megawatts.