Geothermal Digest » Producer News

BC court backs first step in Sierra plan

admin — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 02:55:34 +0000

In Canada, the Supreme Court of British Columbia has issued an interim order authorizing Sierra Geothermal Power Corp. to call a special meeting of its shareholders to consider a special resolution approving the proposed plan of arrangement with Ram Power Corp., previously announced by press release on July 8, 2010. The plan would have Ram acquiring all of Sierra’s outstanding shares in exchange for common shares of Ram Power effective upon closing of the arrangement, which will be scheduled to occur after shareholder approval is received. Sierra proposes to hold the special meeting of shareholders August 31, 2010, at the offices of its counsel. The special resolution must be approved by at least 66 2/3% of the votes cast by shareholders represented in person or by proxy at the special meeting.

Magma aiming at $40 million for more HS Orka

admin — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 15:04:24 +0000

In Canada, Magma Energy Corp. has entered into an underwriting agreement and filed an amended and restated preliminary prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities with respect to the issuance of 35,714,286 common shares at a price of $1.12 per share, for gross proceeds of $40,000,000. Closing is scheduled to take place on July 27, 2010. The net proceeds from the are intended to be used for Magma’s acquisition of 52.35% of the outstanding shares of HS Orka hf from Geysir Green Energy, as well as for working capital and general corporate purposes. Magma currently owns about 46% of HS Orka, a geothermal plant in Iceland that produces 175 MW of power and 150 MW of thermal energy for district heating.

Sierra, Ram finalize acquisition

admin — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 16:12:09 +0000

In Canada, Sierra Geothermal Power Corp. and Ram Power Corp. announced that they have entered into a definitive arrangement agreement that will let Ram acquire all the issued and outstanding common shares of Sierra. Under the terms, each common share of Sierra will be exchanged for 0.0833333 of a common share of Ram, and all options and warrants of Sierra will become exercisable for options and warrants of Ram on a basis equivalent to the exchange ratio. On closing, Ram is expected to issue approximately 11.13 million common shares to the current shareholders of Sierra. The transaction is subject to there being at least $2.9 million of working capital of Sierra at closing as well as the approval of TSX, TSXV, common shareholders of Sierra, and the courts. The deal is expected to close during the third quarter.

Mineral rights acquisitions saves royalty payments

admin — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 15:38:50 +0000

In Idaho, U.S. Geothermal Inc. says its subsidiary, USG Oregon LLC has acquired two underlying geothermal mineral ownership interests at the Neal Hot Springs project in eastern Oregon. A 25% mineral interest on 600 acres was purchased from a private estate and an option on an additional 25% interest in 2,110 acres was executed with a subsidiary of International Paper. The two acquisitions in part overlie each other, and when combined provide USG Oregon with 600 acres of 50% mineral ownership and 1,510 acres of 25% mineral ownership in the heart of the defined Neal Hot Springs geothermal reservoir. U.S. Geothermal President and CEO Daniel Kunz said the acquisitions will reduce the company’ annual royalty burden.

NGP’s Faulkner 1 operating at 99% availability

admin — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 20:11:45 +0000

In Canada, Nevada Geothermal Power Inc. said its Blue Mountain, Faulkner 1 geothermal plant output was 38 MW on average and that plant availability was 99% during the first full months of operation since the re-design and installation of the new electrical cable system. Gross revenue was $4.2 million during the period and operations proceeded without incident. The company intends to seek an increase of the supply amount in the fourth quarter. NGP also outlined plan for a Phase II plant at the site and an ultimate increase in the total possible production capability from the field to about 70 MW.

Magma announces four management changes

admin — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 01:44:48 +0000

In Canada, Magma Energy Corp. said that Sandra Lim will retire as Chief Financial Officer June 30 and that Annette Cusworth has been appointed to replace her effective July 1. The company also named Jonathan Singh to the role of Controller. At Magma’s Reno office, Monte Morrison has been promoted to U.S. Country Manager and Vice President Operations. Finally, Mark Kumataka will join Magma’s Reno office as Chief Engineer.

Ormat restarts volcano, hurricane-damaged plant

admin — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 21:46:52 +0000

In Nevada, Ormat Technologies said that all three power units of the Amatitlan Power Plant in Guatemala have been returned to service and the plant is now selling power to the grid. This followed cleanup efforts that removed ash from the recent volcanic eruption. The majority of the damage has been repaired and additional work remains to address the impact of tropical storm Agatha. Ormat expects the remaining impact will be an output reduction of between 5 to 6 MW for the next 3 months.

Puna plant back to full production

admin — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 20:11:33 +0000

In Hawaii, the Puna Geothermal Power Plant, located on the Big Island, is now back at full production, according to Ormat Technologies, Inc.’s subsidiary, Puna Geothermal Venture. The company completed drilling and the mechanical cleaning of the production wells at the plant. Ormat’s CEO Dita Bronicki said the well field work was completed “within the budget and on time.” Bizjournals.com noted that, after the statement was released, Ormat’s stock closed at up 3.27%.

DOE offers U.S. Geothermal conditional loan

admin — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 21:54:28 +0000

In Idaho, the U.S. Department of Energy has offered U.S. Geothermal, Inc. a conditional commitment for a $102.2-million loan guarantee to construct the planned 22 MW power plant at Neal Hot Springs in Eastern Oregon. The Neal Hot Springs development project is the first geothermal project to be offered a conditional commitment for a loan guarantee under DOE’s Title XVII loan guarantee program, which was created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to support the deployment of innovative clean energy technologies. Issuance of the loan guarantee is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions precedent. Once issued, the loan guarantee will guarantee the loan from the U.S. Treasury’s Federal Financing Bank.

Ormat shuts Guatemalan plant, finds no damage after volcano erupts

admin — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 20:19:13 +0000

In Nevada, Ormat Technologies, Inc. has said that its 20MW Amatitlan power plant was temporarily shut down due to the May 28 volcanic eruption of Volcano De Pacaya in Guatemala. The shutdown was intended to protect equipment, although the company also said that there were no injuries to plant’s staff. Preliminary inspection shows no substantial equipment damage; however, the plant will require a thorough clean up prior to restarting. Volcanoes aside, the plant’s gathering system was damaged as a result of tropical storm Agatha, which struck last week. Ormat thinks most of the wells can be connected to the 20 MW plant quickly and partial operation will resume as soon as the cleanup of the volcanic ash is finished.