(Bloomberg) — SunEdison Inc. is seeking to raise $750
million to buy assets as it explores other corporate structures
to manage an expanding empire of solar and wind farm
partnerships.
The renewable-energy developer is evaluating options
including whether to become a general partner that would control
its so-called yieldcos, Maryland Heights, Missouri-based
SunEdison said Monday in a statement.
SunEdison controls a publicly traded unit, TerraForm Power
Inc., that owns and operates power plants, and said Thursday
that it’s planning to create a second one. A portion of the
money it said it’s raising Monday will go to buy assets to seed
the second venture. As its corporate structure expands, the
company is now evaluating the best way to organize the various
units.
“The most efficient and commonly utilized structure by
sponsors of yield vehicles is the general partnership structure
in a master limited partnership,” SunEdison said in the
statement. The strategic review is expected to be finished by
the end of the year, and it’s possible nothing will change.
SunEdison can’t form an MLP because the Internal Revenue
Service doesn’t currently permit renewable energy assets to be
organized in that structure, according to Jacqueline Lilinshtein, an analyst with Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
Congress is considering legislation that would address this.
Yieldcos operate power plants with long-term contracts to
sell electricity. That creates a steady revenue stream that
funds payments to investors and the purchase of additional
assets, and helps lower financing costs.
SunEdison plans to sell $750 million in convertible debt,
in part to purchase assets for the new venture, which will be
called TerraForm Global Inc., and to create a warehouse facility
for future acquisitions, according to a separate statement. Half
the notes would be due in 2023 and half in 2025.
The company announced Friday that it’s seeking to raise as
much as $700 million in an initial public offering of TerraForm
Global, as well as deals to purchase 757 megawatts of wind,
solar and hydropower assets in developing nations.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Justin Doom in New York at
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Reed Landberg at
Will Wade, Tina Davis