Blowing strong after Rudd promise

Australian Financial Review
Friday 8/2/2008 Page: 34

Excitement has increased in the wind energy sector since the Federal Government said it planned to raise Mandatory Renewable Energy Target levels to 20 percent of Australia's forecast electricity demand by 2020.

So far, Origin Energy and Macquarie Capital Group have said they are teaming up with Epuron for separate projects and AGL Energy has signed an agreement with Meridian Energy, while Pacific Hydro is considering a number of options including a partial float to free up capital and fast-track wind farms and other clean energy projects. Hong Kong's CLP Holdings (which owns TRUEnergy) and AGL are thought to be interested in buying a stake in Pacific Hydro, while international wind players active in Australia such as Germany's Conergy (which owns Epuron) Spain's Acciona (which was the underbidder for Pacific Hydro when IFM bought it in 2005) and New Zealand's Meridian Energy would potentially be interested.

Those who could be interested in a Pacific Hydro stake were a trade sale to take place include Macquarie Group, Babcock and Brown, Allco Finance Group, Transfield Services and the infrastructure divisions of Australia's big four retail banks. According to JPMorgan, AGL has plans for wind farms at Brown Hill (South Australia), Mallett Hill (SA) and Macarthur (Victoria); Origin Energy for Cullerin Range (New South Wales), Conroy's Gap (NSW) and Snowy Plains (NSW); and Babcock and Brown Wind for Lake Bonney II and Capital (NSW). JPMorgan analysts have also noted that wind contributed 45 percent of the renewable energy certificates created under MRET in 2007.