Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power today announced an agreement to acquire the company's second solar photovoltaic (PV) installation inCalifornia – the 20-megawatt (MW) Adobe Solar Facility – in partnership with Turner Renewable Energy. The Southern Power-Turner Renewable Energy partnership's sixth solar project acquisition is expected to close upon the successful completion of construction, which is anticipated in spring 2014.

"Southern Company continues to be a leader in the development of renewable generation," said Southern Company Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "The Adobe Solar Facility reflects our ongoing commitment to develop the full portfolio of energy resources – an effort that has amounted to more than 1,700 megawatts of additional renewable energy resources since January 2012."

The Adobe Solar Facility will be built, operated and maintained by SunEdison, a leading global solar technology manufacturer and provider of solar technology and solar energy services. Construction of the project began this fall.

Ted Turner, owner of Turner Renewable Energy, teamed with Southern Company through a subsidiary in January 2010 to form a strategic alliance to pursue development of renewable energy projects in the United States. The partnership has primarily focused on developing and investing in solar PV projects where solar resources are most favorable.

"Renewable energy is playing an increasingly important role in meeting America's energy needs," said Turner. "The agreement to acquire the Adobe Solar Facility demonstrates our companies' continued commitment to the strategic development of renewable energy."

The Adobe Solar Facility will be located on a 160-acre site in Kern County, Calif.

"We are pleased to enter our fourth partnership with Southern Company and Turner Renewable Energy, and are delighted they share our commitment to solar energy," said SunEdison President and CEO Ahmad Chatila. "The Adobe Solar Facility is another example of how SunEdison's innovation continues to make solar an economically attractive energy solution."

Electricity generated by the plant will serve a 20-year power purchase agreement with Southern California Edison, a subsidiary of Edison International. Headquartered in Rosemead, Calif., Edison International, through its subsidiaries, is a generator and distributor of electric power and an investor in infrastructure and energy assets, including renewable energy. 

The acquisition fits Southern Power's business strategy of growing the wholesale business in targeted markets through acquiring generating assets and building new units, the output of which is significantly covered by long-term contracts.