BG Group plc today announced that it has signed a Sale and Purchase Agreement with Silver Ship MP Partners, a partnership between Flagship Energy and funds affiliated with private investment firm Silver Point Capital, for BG's purchase of the Masspower power plant, a 262 MW gas and oil fired combined cycle facility located in Indian Orchard, Massachusetts, USA for US$150 million. Closing is expected to occur in the second quarter of 2007.
The Masspower facility supplies power into the Independent System Operator New England (ISO-NE), a well established and liquid power market. Masspower is BG’s third power acquisition in New England. In October 2006 BG acquired the 170MW combined cycle Dighton power plant in Bristol County, Massachusetts and in March 2007 BG acquired the 805MW gas and oil fired combined cycle Lake Road facility in Bristol County, Massachusetts.
Martin Houston, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of BG North America, Caribbean and Global LNG said:
"Masspower is in our focus market, ISO-NE, which is particularly attractive given the rapidly tightening reserve margins in the region and the newly implemented Forward Capacity Market. Masspower is an excellent asset in a favourable location that will allow BG to enhance its portfolio of power assets and gas positions in the northeast US."
Notes to Editors:
BG Group plc is a global natural gas business. Active on five continents in 25 countries, it operates four business segments – Exploration and Production, LNG, Transmission and Distribution and Power.
ISO-NE is a regional transmission organisation (RTO), serving Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The Forward Capacity Market (FCM) is a mechanism implemented by ISO-NE to ensure a controlled approach to new generation build in the region. Operational from December 2006, FCM gives a fixed monthly capacity payment to existing generation capacity. This provides an additional revenue stream for Masspower.
BG Group develops, owns and operates power generation facilities across the globe. It has existing interests in over in 3.55 Gigawatts of power generation capacity across three continents:
Europe and Central Asia
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UK - Premier Power Limited (1316MW) - a wholly owned subsidiary of BG Group.
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UK - Seabank Power Limited (1130MW) - 50:50 joint venture with Scottish and Southern Energy.
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Italy - Serene S.p.A. (386MW) – BG Group has 100% ownership of co-generation at five locations adjacent to Fiat Auto factories. The power stations are located at Melfi, Termoli, Cassino, Sulmona and Rivalta.
Asia Pacific
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Malaysia - Genting Sanyen Power (760MW) - BG has a 20% interest and holds a 21 year contract to sell power to the Malaysian national power company.
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The Philippines - The Santa Rita Power Station (1000MW) and San Lorenzo (505MW) - BG Group has a 40% interest and the remaining 60% is owned by First Gas Holdings Corporation.
United States
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Dighton Power plant (170MW) – BG has 100% ownership of this combined cycle plant in Massachusetts (purchased October 2006).
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Lake Road (805MW) – BG has 100% ownership of this combined cycle plant in Connecticut (purchased March 2007).
BG North America
In the USA, BG LNG Services LLC, (BGLS), holds - through 2028 - 100% of the capacity rights at North America’s largest operating LNG importation terminal, Lake Charles in Louisiana. This facility has the capability to receive, store, vaporise and deliver an average daily send out of 1.8 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d).
Additionally, BGLS currently holds supply and regasification rights of 446 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscf/d) for 22 years at the Elba Island LNG terminal near Savannah, Georgia. Expansion work is expected to increase its throughput capacity to 1.17 bcf/d from 2012.
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There are matters discussed in this media information that are forward looking statements. Such statements are only predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. For a discussion of important factors which could cause actual results to differ from the forward looking statements, refer to the Company’s annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 December 2005. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly, or revise, forward looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.
Cautionary note to US investors - The United States Securities and Exchange Commission permits oil and gas companies, in their filings with the SEC, to disclose only proved reserves that a company has demonstrated by actual production or conclusive formation tests to be economically and legally producible under existing economic and operating conditions. In this announcement we use the term “undeveloped gas” and in Notes to Editors we use the term “indicated gross reserves” that the SEC's guidelines strictly prohibit us from including in filings with the SEC. US investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No. 1-09337, available from us at BG Group, 100 Thames Valley Park Drive, Reading RG6 1PT. You may read and copy this information at the SEC's public reference room, located at 100 F Street NE, Room 1580, Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference room. This filing is also avail able at the internet website maintained by SEC at http://www.sec.gov
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