Dominion, Mirant Complete Indiana Power Plant Sale
RICHMOND, Va., - Mirant
(NYSE: MIR) has completed the sale of Mirant State Line Ventures to Dominion
(NYSE: D) for approximately $182 million, the two companies announced today.
The two companies announced the sales agreement in February.
Through the sale, Dominion acquires 100 percent ownership
of the assets from Mirant including the 515-megawatt, coal-fired State Line
power plant near Hammond, Ind., and a power purchase contract with Exelon, the
sole purchaser of the plant's output.
Under the terms of the power purchase agreement, which expires
in 2012, Exelon will continue to provide 100 percent of the coal and its transportation
to the power plant.
"We're pleased to welcome State Line and the committed,
hard working, skilled men and women who have earned this power plant's well-deserved
reputation for efficient and reliable operations," said Thos. E. Capps, chairman,
president and chief executive officer of Dominion. "With completion of this
acquisition, we're adding a top flight power plant to our fleet. This transaction
increases Dominion's production capability significantly, provides additional
fuel mix diversity, and enhances our overall operating presence in a key Midwest
energy market."
"With the sale of State Line, we have announced or
sold over $1.4 billion in assets this year and are currently ahead of schedule
toward meeting our goal of $1.6 billion in asset sales," said Randy Harrison,
senior vice president, Mirant. "These actions will improve our liquidity and
strengthen our balance sheet."
The State Line plant consists of two coal-fired units (Units
3 and 4) totaling 515 megawatts. The two units burn low-sulfur coal from Wyoming's
Powder River Basin. The plant's Units 1 and 2 were decommissioned in the late
1970s.
Dominion acquired State Line's sister facility, the 1,158-megawatt
Kincaid power plant near Springfield, Ill., from Exelon in 1998. Dominion operates
11 other coal-fired power plants in Virginia and West Virginia.
Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers of energy,
with a production capability of more than 3 trillion British thermal unit of
energy per day. Dominion has a diversified and integrated energy portfolio consisting
of nearly 24,000-megawatts of generation, 5.1 trillion cubic feet equivalent
of proved natural gas reserves, 7,600 miles of natural gas transmission pipeline
and the nation's largest underground natural gas storage system with more than
950 billion cubic feet of storage capacity. Dominion also serves 3.9 million
franchise natural gas and electric customers in five states. In addition, Dominion
owns a managing equity interest in Dominion Fiber Ventures LLC, owner of Dominion
Telecom. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's web site at
www.dom.com.
Mirant is a global competitive energy company. Mirant delivers
value by integrating an extensive portfolio of power and natural gas assets
with marketing and risk management expertise. The company has facilities in
North America, Asia, Caribbean and Europe. Visit Mirant at www.mirant.com.
Caution from Mirant regarding forward-looking statements:
Some of the statements provided herein include forward-looking
information, in addition to historical information. Mirant cautions that there
can be no assurance that such indicative results will be realized and that there
are various important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those indicated in the forward-looking statements, such as, but not limited
to, changes in our business plan or potential business strategies, including
goals concerning the dispositions of assets or internal restructuring. Mirant
expressly disclaims any duty to update the forward-looking statements presented
herein.
Caution from Dominion regarding forward-looking statements:
This release contains forward-looking statements that are
subject to various risks and uncertainties. Discussion of factors that could
cause actual results to differ materially from management's projections, forecasts,
estimates and expectations may include factors that are beyond the company's
ability to control or estimate precisely, such as estimates of future market
conditions, estimates of proved and unproved reserves and the behavior of other
market participants. Other factors include, but are not limited to, weather
conditions, economic conditions in the company's service area, fluctuations
in energy-related commodity prices, trading counterparty credit risks, risks
associated with successfully executing the telecommunications business plan
and other uncertainties. Other risk factors are detailed from time to time in
the company's Securities & Exchange Commission filings.
