Toronto, Ontario–(Newsfile Corp. – October 16, 2023) – UGE International Ltd. (TSXV: UGE) (OTCQB: UGEIF) (the “Company” or “UGE”), a leader in commercial and community solar, announces milestones and business updates for the third quarter ending September 30, 2023.
UGE’s Largest Rooftop Community Solar Project Reaches NTP, Appraised at USD$3.9 Million
During the quarter, UGE achieved the Notice to Proceed (NTP) milestone for a rooftop community solar project in New York City totaling 1.4MW, the Company’s largest rooftop project to reach NTP since it transitioned to an independent power producer (“IPP”) model. The NTP milestone indicates that financing for the project has closed and all necessary permits and interconnection approvals for the project are in place.
An independent third party appraised the project at a value of USD$2.82 per watt, for a total project value of USD$3.9 million. UGE will receive a grant through New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)’s Clean Energy Communities program which is designed to help incentivize, among other clean energy priorities, the development of community solar programs and specifically those which serve Low-to-Moderate Income (LMI) communities. UGE’s grant is expected to total USD $1.7 million.
The project will join UGE’s LMI program, meaning that at least 30% of the energy generated by the project will be reserved for LMI households. Strengthening renewable energy equity is one of UGE’s guiding goals; the Company’s stated target is for more than 25% of the off take from its operational portfolio to serve LMI households by 2026.
On October 10, soon after the close of the third quarter, the Company achieved NTP for a 3.5MW Community Solar Project in Oregon. The project marks UGE’s first in Oregon and is the Company’s largest project to reach the NTP milestone since transitioning to the IPP model. The project is scheduled to reach commercial operation in June 2024.
With the Oregon project, UGE has reached NTP on 18.1MW of projects so far in 2023.
Three Rooftop Projects Near Completion, Appraised at USD$5.1 Million
Three rooftop community solar projects totaling 1.8MW are in the late stages of construction and are currently anticipated to reach commercial operation before the end of this year. The first of these three projects, a 1MW installation atop a school fieldhouse, is set to become Maine’s largest rooftop community solar project when it goes live at the end of October.
The other two projects, both located in the greater New York City area, will offset energy costs and carbon emissions for wireless provider T-Mobile as part of an ongoing partnership announced in November 2021. UGE will reserve 50% of the projects’ energy output for LMI subscribers, allowing these households and businesses to save 10% on their electricity costs.
UGE had all three projects appraised by an independent third-party, for a cumulative total value of USD$5.1 million. The two New York projects will receive NYSERDA Clean Energy Communities grants, which are expected to total USD$413,500.
UGE Projects Stages 3.1-6*
As-of September 30, 2023
Backlog Risk Management Strengthened
In the third quarter, UGE devoted its origination efforts to further strengthening and formalizing the risk management standards a project must meet before officially entering the Company’s backlog.* While this process resulted in some projects moving out of the backlog for further review, these exercises will ultimately lead to faster development timelines and higher returns for UGE’s portfolio of projects as a whole. On September 30, 2023, the Company’s backlog totaled 343MW.
UGE’s stage 3.0 development pipeline, which represents projects with site control secured but yet to receive investment committee approval, grew by 16MW in Q3 to now total 621MW. As of September 30, 2023, the Company has a pre-development pipeline (stages 1 and 2) of over 2 gigawatts, as well.
*’Backlog’ indicates the projects for which the Company has formalized site control and officially approved development to begin.
UGE Secures Project Financing
On August 24, UGE closed an overnight marketed offering of debentures (“Green Bonds”) for aggregate gross proceeds of USD$5,749,655. The offering was conducted by a syndicate of underwriters led by Canaccord Genuity Corp. On October 10 the Company announced another such marketed offering of up to USD$5 Million in project development green bonds, also led by Canaccord Genuity Corp. The Offering is expected to close on or about October 30.
Additionally, during the third quarter, UGE closed on construction, term, and tax equity financing for six projects located across the country, including New York, Texas, and Oregon.
About UGE
UGE develops, owns, and operates commercial and community solar and battery storage projects. Our distributed energy solutions deliver cheaper, cleaner energy to businesses and consumers with no upfront cost. With over 500MW of global experience, we work daily to power a more sustainable world. Visit us at www.ugei.com.
For more information, contact UGE: Nick Blitterswyk – [email protected] or +1 917 720 5685.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company. Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as “plan”, “continue”, “expect”, “project”, “intend”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “may”, “will”, “potential”, “proposed” and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions “may” or “will” occur. These statements are only predictions. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the anticipated use of proceeds, and the listing of the Green Debentures on the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.
