Solar Millennium Sells Parabolic Trough Power Plant Andasol 3 to Solanda GmbH

Solar Millennium AG sold the project company for the parabolic trough power plant Andasol 3, Marquesado Solar S.L., to Solanda GmbH. The acquisition price was kept confidential. MAN Ferrostaal AG from Essen, Germany, holds 61.5 percent in Solanda GmbH. The remaining share of 38.5 percent is held by Solar Millennium. The entry of MAN Ferrostaal into the project secures the scheduled construction progress of Andasol 3, even against the backdrop of the latest developments in Spanish legislation.

With the Real Decreto 6/2009 passed on 7 May 2009, Spanish legislators have changed the conditions for granting legally guaranteed feed-in tariffs. Amongst other requirements, evidence of the most important permissions and the procurement of key components must be provided. In addition, the ability to finance at least 50 percent of the investment total of the respective power plant project is required in order to pre-register the project and thus secure the feed-in tariffs. After registration with the authorities, which is expected to take place by the end of September for Andasol 3, the full feed-in tariffs will be guaranteed provided that the power plant is connected to the grid within the following 36 months. As a consequence, the increased tariff security makes Andasol 3 even more attractive than before for the planned entry of additional investors.