SSE Buys Electricity Generation Assets In Ireland

06/15/2012| 02:37am US/Eastern

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LONDON--Electric utility SSE PLC (>> SSE PLC) Friday said it entered into an agreement to acquire Endesa Ireland Limited for a total cash consideration of 320 million euros, or 256 million pounds, plus an estimated EUR43 million, or GBP34 million, for working capital purposes.

MAIN FACTS:

-Subsidiary SSE Generation Ltd. entered into an agreement with Endesa Generacion SA (CECO2.BA), to acquire the shares of Endesa Ireland Limited.

-Expects to complete the purchase later this summer, at which point around 110 employees of Endesa Ireland Limited will transfer to SSE.

-Endesa Ireland operational assets include:

* 620MW, or megawatt, fuel oil Tarbert Power Station in Co. Kerry.

* 240MW fuel oil Great Island Power Station in Co. Wexford.

* 104MW peaking gasoil Tawnaghmore Power Station in Co. Mayo

* 104MW peaking gasoil Rhode Power Station in Co. Offaly.

-460MW CCGT, or combined cycle gas turbine, is currently under construction at Great Island and is expected to be commissioned in 2014, at which time the existing 240MW fuel oil unit will be decommissioned.

-SSE will incur capital expenditure of EUR125 million, or GBP100 million, over three financial years to complete the construction of the new CCGT.

-Expenditure will be included in SSE's plans to incur capital and investment expenditure in the range of GBP1.5 billion to GBP1.7 billion in each of the years to March 2015.

-Acquisition includes three options for the future development of electricity generation plant in Ireland.

-Acquisition and the subsequent investment will total around EUR488 million, or GBP390 million.

-Endesa Ireland's pretax profit for the year ended Dec. 31, 2011, was EUR38.1 million while the value of its gross assets, the total of current and non-current assets, was EUR490.6 million.

-Acquisition is expected to enhance SSE's earnings in the first full year and beyond.

-Shares of SSE on Thursday closed at 1390 pence.

-Write to Tapan Panchal at tapan.panchal@dowjones.com

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