DALLAS — Luminant has acquired NextEra’s La Frontera portfolio, a pair of natural gas power plant facilities in Northeast Texas, for $1.5 billion. The portfolio consists of Forney Energy Center and Lamar Energy Center.
La Frontera can generate power for about 1.5 million homes during normal conditions. The acquisition is expected to close next spring.
The Forney Energy Center is located in Forney. It has a capacity of 1,912 megawatts (MW) and started commercial operation in 2003. Lamar Energy Center is located in Paris. It has a capacity of 1,076 MW and started commercial operation in 2000.
The acquisition represents a total purchase of 2,988 MW of capacity within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) market. ERCOT manages the flow of electric power to 24 million Texas customers, representing about 90 percent of the state’s electric load.
“These plants are strategic investments that enhance our asset portfolio while building on our existing operations in ERCOT,” says Mac McFarland, Luminant’s CEO.
The two combined-cycle gas turbine power plants will join Luminant’s energy portfolio, which already includes coal, natural gas and nuclear power. The portfolio also includes significant purchases of wind-generated electricity and a recently announced solar power purchase agreement.
The acquisition price includes $239 million for cash and about $37 million for net working capital, subject to customary adjustments at closing.
Dallas-based Luminant is a subsidiary of Energy Future Holdings Corp. (EFH). It is a competitive power-generation business that includes mining, wholesale marketing and trading, and development operations.
EFH is an energy-holding company that maintains a portfolio of competitive and regulated energy subsidiaries throughout Texas.