UGE International (UGE), through its wholly owned subsidiary Endura Energy Project (Endura Energy), has executed contracts for the development and construction of 6.3MW of solar projects in Ontario, Canada.
The projects will be owned and operated by TREC Solarshare Co-operative (No. 1) Inc. ("SolarShare"), Canada’s largest non-profit solar power community ownership cooperative.
The portfolio consists of 11 sites: two 600 kilowatt ground-mounted facilities near Kingston, ON, eight 600 kilowatt ground-mounted facilities in Timiskaming, ON, and one 300 kilowatt rooftop facility in Earlton, ON (the "Portfolio"). Each of the ground-mounted facilities will utilize advanced dual-axis solar tracking technology.
Completion of the Portfolio is expected to generate between $18 million CAD and $20 million CAD of revenue for UGE, with project funding starting this month, and construction progressing into 2017.
Endura Energy has been developing and engineering the Portfolio in partnership with Soventix Canada ("SCI"). Endura Energy has the role of performing joint project development activities with SCI, along with the sole responsibility for all turn-key engineering, procurement and construction functions for the Portfolio.
SolarShare will finance all construction activities and purchase the commissioned energy generating facilities shortly after commercial operation. The Portfolio projects are each grid-connected and derive revenue through Ontario’s feed-in tariff FIT3 program.
Endura Energy, SCI, and SolarShare have partnered in the past, having developed and constructed over four megawatts under similar arrangements in Ontario’s FIT1 and FIT2 feed-in-tariff program rounds since 2012. After these FIT3 projects are complete, Endura Energy will have developed and constructed over 90% of the capacity of SolarShare’s generating assets.
"This partnership with Endura Energy, Soventix, and our farming and municipal project site hosts is a win all around," stated Mike Brigham, SolarShare’s President. "With Endura Energy’s development leadership and continued partnership we have now grown to be the largest non-profit solar power cooperative in Canada. These projects permit all Ontarians to engage in the solar energy revolution through the opportunity of direct investment, while allowing the local communities in northern and eastern Ontario to engage through serving as project hosts and operating partners."
"We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Soventix and SolarShare once again," commented Cameron Steinman, UGE’s Chief Strategy Officer. "With these projects we have the opportunity to leverage our unique and valuable experience with mid-sized ground-mounted dual-axis tracking systems, while also furthering our focus in community-based distributed generation. This deal extends our leadership position in both categories."