USA, Idaho: US Geothermal Increases Ownership in Raft River Geothermal Plant

U.S. Geothermal Inc. Acquires Majority of Goldman Sachs Interest in Raft River Power Plant (News Release)

U.S. Geothermal Inc., has announced that it has acquired from Goldman Sachs the majority of their cash flow interest in and ownership of the Raft River geothermal project. U.S. Geothermal will receive 95% of the cash flow from the project on a going forward basis, along with all increased cash flow from any project improvements. The purchase price was $5.1 million for the 95% interest, with an option to purchase the balance of Goldman’s interest for Fair Market Value at the end of 2017.

“This agreement with Goldman Sachs is a strong positive for our company.” said GRC Member Dennis Gilles, CEO of U.S. Geothermal. “It unlocks the ability to consider capital upgrades that should increase output from the facility and potentially reach its design capacity of 13 megawatts. It strengthens our commitment to becoming the North American leader in geothermal energy.”

The Raft River Geothermal Power Plant is located in Southeast Idaho and has a designed capacity of 13 megawatts net. The project is currently operating at approximately 9.4 megawatts. Power from the facility is sold under a firm price, 25 year contract with Idaho Power Company which allows for the full 13 megawatt output. Reservoir modeling indicates that the geothermal reservoir can support the full 13 megawatt contract. Plans are under consideration to drill for additional production to increase plant output to its full contract limit.

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