News

Raser sees further delays on financing agreements for its Thermo No 1 plant

Alexander Richter 7 Dec 2009

Raser Technologies has announced further delays on the financing agreements for its Thermo No 1 geothermal plant.

According to domestic news, “US energy company Raser Technologies has announced further delays on the financing agreements for its Thermo No 1 geothermal plant. The company said it is attempting to amend the framework of its financing agreements in order to be eligible for energy tax credits under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus initiative. Once the agreements are renegotiated, Raser says that it will apply for a grant of $30-$34m.

The agreed date for completion and finalisation of all agreements regarding its financing has been delayed, with five extensions granted since mid September. In a project update in October, the company said that it was in the final stages of testing the fifth production well needed to complete the Thermo No 1 project in line with plans to bring the plant to full capacity by the end of the year.

In an announcement regarding the financing arrangements at the start of November, the company indicated that it had received almost a month’s grace to resolve the issue, until November 30. However, it seems that Raser were unable to fully negotiate terms during the time. The new deadline is 3 December.

If the grant application is approved, the company says that it intends to use some of the money to pay back a portion of Prudential’s debt and Merril Lynch’s tax equity interest, to become the sole owner of Thermo No 1.

The company recently entered into an agreement with three of its line of credit lenders to repay $5.4m of debt.”

Source: New Energy World Network