Ontario Teachers' to expand ownership of BluEarth Renewables

TORONTO, June 25, 2015 /PRNewswire/ - Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (Teachers') today announced the acquisition of the outstanding shares of BluEarth Renewables Inc. (BluEarth) owned by ARC Energy Fund 6, advised by ARC Financial Corp. (ARC), and minority shareholders, with BluEarth management and employees maintaining an ownership stake.

Teachers', through its Teachers' Private Capital (TPC) group, has been a lead investor in BluEarth since the company was established in 2010.  Terms of the transaction are not being disclosed. Closing is expected by the end of July 2015.

Headquartered in Calgary, BluEarth is a private independent renewable power producer, focused on the acquisition, development, construction and operation of wind, hydro and solar projects. BluEarth's portfolio currently includes interests in 18 projects across Canada totalling 174 net megawatts, with a pipeline of earlier stage development projects. BluEarth will continue to focus on growth through the acquisition and development of renewable energy projects in Canada and other markets globally.

Concurrent with the closing of this transaction, BluEarth announced the appointment of Grant Arnold to President & CEO from his previous role of Chief Operating Officer. Kent Brown, co-founder and President & CEO will remain as a member of the Board of Directors and will transition to the role of Executive Advisor.

"During our partnership with ARC, BluEarth established itself as a leader in the Canadian renewable power sector. Its portfolio of high quality projects will provide attractive long-term returns that will help us to pay member pensions," said Jane Rowe, Senior Vice-President, TPC. "We are pleased to be moving forward with BluEarth to support the next phase of its growth. I would like to thank Kent Brown for his role in founding and building BluEarth and welcome Grant Arnold as the new President & CEO."

As the global energy mix begins shifting to cleaner sources, Teachers' will continue to invest in renewable and alternative opportunities that are consistent with the investment goal of earning returns to pay pensions and the need to consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in investment decisions.

About Teachers'
With $154.5 billion in net assets as of December 31, 2014, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan is the largest single-profession pension plan in Canada.  It has earned a 10.2% annualized rate of return since its founding in 1990. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, its Asian regional office is located in Hong Kong and its European, Middle East and African region office is in London. An independent organization, it invests the pension fund's assets and administers the pensions of 311,000 active and retired teachers in Ontario. For more information, including our annual reports from 2014 and previous years, visit www.otpp.com.  Follow us on Twitter @OtppInfo

SOURCE Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan