It’s clear now. Warren Buffett, the world’s third richest man, absolutely loves renewable energy.
His latest stamp of approval came this Wednesday when Berkshire Hathaway’s MidAmerican Energy announced its buy of the the Las-Vegas based NV Energy for $5.6 billion—a transaction worth $10 billion.
At the heart of MidAmerican’s plans is a vision to tap Nevada’s vast solar, wind, and geothermal assets. This deal will marry MidAmerican’s great expertise in renewables and NV Energy’s groundbreaking projects, Michael Yackira, NV Energy president and CEO, told the press. And in the end, MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company will have $66 billion in assets and boost its gas and electric customer base to 8.4 million.
(Image credit: Flickr user Aaron Friedman)
Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, stated that “we are pleased to make a long-term investment in Nevada’s economy. But also, “we have found in NV Energy a great company with similar values, outstanding assets, and a superb management team.”
In January, Buffett’s MidAmerican bought the 579MW Antelope Valley solar projects from SunPower Corp for $2.5 billion. The California projects are set to be the largest photovoltaic development in the world.
Now, the Buffett-backed NV Energy is eager to bring its assets to the table. Here are some of the utility's top achievements in renewables:
- NV Energy surpassed the 1GW of renewable energy mark in 2012. The utility possesses one of the most diverse and advanced renewable energy portfolios in America. In addition, Nevada’s aggressive Renewable Portfolio Standard requires utilities to source 25% of its energy from renewable by 2025.
- One of NV Energy’s biggest projects is the 110MW Crescent Dunes solar project. Still in its construction phase, the project features a molten salt storage system to spark electricity generation even when the sun is down and will be completed in 2014.
- Wind energy is also taking off in Nevada. The Pattern Energy Group LP is wrapping up the new Spring Valley Wind project – a 152MW wind farm erected on 77 acres of public land and featuring 66 Siemens 2.3MW wind turbines.
- NV Energy is also close to finishing its largest geothermal station, the 53.5MW Clayton Valley development.
- On top of this, NV Energy has proactively promoted customer-installed renewable energy facilities and offers rebates for solar, wind and hydro projects. The program, called the RenewableGenerations program, has installed 1,400 projects, generating 38MW for homes, businesses, public facilities, and schools--the utility reports.
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