RWE became the second largest producer of electricity from solar energy in the United States

German energy company RWE October 1 reported on the purchase of all renewable energy (RES) operations from the American corporation Con Edison. The deal is valued at $6.8 billion and will be financed in part by the sale of RWE bonds to the Qatar State Investment Fund (QIA).

Con Edison’s renewable energy operations, called Con Edison Clean Energy Businesses (Con Edison CEB), have a strong presence in the US and include solar and wind farms, and the development and manufacture of batteries for energy storage. With around 1,400 employees, Con Edison CEB is one of the country’s leading renewable energy operators with 3 GW of capacity already on-line (90% of which is solar) and another 7 MW in development.

With Con Edison CEB’s capacity, RWE will become the world’s fourth largest renewable energy company and the second largest U.S. solar electricity producer. Including existing and ongoing Con Edison CEB projects, the total capacity of RWE projects under development worldwide will reach 24 GW. By opinion observers, this transaction is part of RWE’s strategy to increase investment in renewable energy. By 2030, the German company plans to invest about €15 billion in the development of renewable energy sources in the US alone, and €50 billion worldwide.

Evgeniy Khvostik