Vorotan hydroelectric facility acquisition completed

PanARMENIAN.Net - ContourGlobal and the Republic of Armenia announced the completion of the acquisition of the assets of the Vorotan hydroelectric facility, a series of three individual power plants with a total electrical capacity of 405 MW on the Vorotan River in southern Armenia.

ContourGlobal also announced that the International Finance Corporation (“IFC”), a member of the World Bank Group, has acquired a 20% interest in ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade to help acquire, operate, and rehabilitate the Vorotan Hydropower Cascade. The project aims to enhance electricity supply reliability and strengthen the country’s power sector.

The acquisition represents the largest single U.S. private investment in Armenia’s history and the first U.S. investment in Armenia’s energy sector. The Vorotan Hydro Cascade accounts for roughly 15% of the installed capacity of Armenia’s electricity system and provides sufficient energy to power 250,000 homes.

Under the terms of the agreement, ContourGlobal Hydro Cascade will own and operate the three hydroelectric facilities located on the Vorotan River and will supply power to the Armenian grid under a long-term power purchase agreement. ContourGlobal will invest more than Euro 50 million over the next six years in a refurbishment program to modernize the plants and improve their operational performance, safety, reliability and efficiency.

ContourGlobal expects the modernization to create 150 near-term jobs in addition to the 150 long-term technicians employed at the plants.