Denham Capital Invests an Additional $108 Million in Geothermal Developer Vulcan Power Company
February 3rd, 2010 - Posted in geo thermal energyBEND, Ore. & BOSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Vulcan Power Company (“Vulcan”), a developer of geothermal energy projects, and Denham Capital, an energy- and commodities-focused private investment firm, announced today that an affiliate of Denham Capital has invested $108 million in preferred and common stock of Vulcan. This is the second equity investment in Vulcan by such Denham Capital affiliate and brings its total investment in Vulcan to $166 million. Other shareholders include a principal investing division of Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Vulcan’s extensive geothermal property portfolio consists of approximately 170,000 acres of prime geothermal properties in Nevada, California, Oregon and Arizona. The new investment will allow Vulcan to continue its ongoing development of properties representing more than 300 megawatts (MW) of estimated geothermal resources from just half of the company’s total acreage. This capacity, once operational, will provide baseload renewable energy for up to 300,000 households. The company has long-term power sales contracts with major California and Nevada utilities and transmission access to northern and southern California already completed or underway. The permitting process for two of its project sites is also well underway.
Robert Warburton, acting CEO of Vulcan, commented on the financing: “Geothermal development requires greater capital investment upfront compared to other renewable power projects, but once built, geothermal has significantly lower all-in costs making it very competitive with traditional, non-renewable generation sources. Denham understands both the below ground and above ground dynamics of geothermal development, making them a great resource to Vulcan. This investment ensures Vulcan has the capital to continue the execution of its development program.” (more)
