LS Power has completed its $2.5 billion acquisition of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.’s renewable energy business, adding to its existing fleet of over 23,000 MW.
Algonquin’s fleet includes renewables, energy storage and natural gas, along with a deep pipeline of projects at various stages of development. Generation from the deal is spread across CAISO, MISO and PJM.
“By substantially increasing our generation capacity and pipeline of new renewable projects, we will continue to help meet rising power demand while advancing the energy transition,” LS Power CEO Paul Segal said in a statement. “We see great opportunity to deliver renewable projects at scale across the country, and this transaction furthers our plan to execute this vision.”
The sale leaves the Canada-based Algonquin with a smaller, fully regulated profile that still includes its hydropower assets.
“This transaction, coupled with the recent sale of our 42.2% ownership stake in Atlantica Sustainable Infrastructure plc on Dec. 12, 2024, achieves a pivotal step in our journey to transform AQN into a pure-play regulated utility with reduced complexity,” Algonquin CEO Chris Huskilson said. “Though there is still work to be done, passing this milestone should enable a greater focus on increasing the pace of this transition.”
LS Power is forming a new subsidiary company called Clearlight Energy to manage the acquired operating wind and solar assets that are spread across the United States and Canada and include 44 projects with more than 3,000 MW. It will be run by Jeff Norman, who previously was president of renewables at Algonquin.
Algonquin had 8,000 MW of renewable and storage projects under development around North America. Clearlight Energy will work on 1,800 MW of those, which include the Canadian projects and those that are co-located with existing assets. REV Renewables, a previously existing LS Power subsidiary, will get the other 6,200 MW of development projects in the United States, bringing its development pipeline to more than 21,000 MW.
“The acquisition of these additional development projects complements REV’s objectives to develop renewable energy solutions that will transform our electric system,” REV Renewables CEO Ed Sondey said.
The deal won approval from FERC in an order issued in December (EC24-111), which found the deal would be in the public interest. PJM’s Independent Market Monitor filed a report saying the combined firm would have market power in a subregion of the RTO, but the commission rejected its use.
The IMM also wanted some behavioral requirements to mitigate the alleged market power, but FERC declined to impose them. FERC said the monitor’s issues were aimed more generally at its merger evaluations and market power protections in PJM, not the specific deal in front of it.