It was revealed that Google recently partnered with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) to invest in Recurrent Energy’s portfolio of PV facilities serving the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD). VentureBeat reports that the investment totals US$94 million, which was financed through a combination of debt and equity from Google and KKR’s newly formed SunTap Energy.
The portfolio from Recurrent Energy includes four solar PV facilities that provide 88MW of power to SMUD. The sites are noted as being some of the first to be awarded as part of the utility’s FiT program, which began in January 2010. Construction for three of the area projects is set to be completed in early 2012, with the fourth finished later in the year. The projects hold an estimated 160,000,000kWh energy production for their first year of operation.
“Google’s commitment to clean energy continues to be a core value for the company,” said Axel Martinez, Assistant Treasurer at Google. “Over the past 18 months, Google has made investments in the sector that not only help deploy hundreds of megawatts of sustainable power, but also enable new and exciting business opportunities. We’re excited to be supporting KKR’s entrance into the renewable energy sector in the U.S. We hope the sector continues to attract new sources of capital.”
