FirstEnergy Corp. (FE) said it will purchase 100 megawatts (MW) of output from the Blue Creek Wind Farm through its subsidiary FirstEnergy Solutions. The company said it will buy the agreed 100 MW out of the total output from the Blue Creek project for 20 years starting October 2012.
The 304-MW Blue Creek Wind Farm is the first large-scale wind operation being constructed in western Ohio by Iberdrola Renewables, the world’s leading provider of wind power.
FirstEnergy said the tie up with Blue Creek Wind Farm, the company’s first wind power agreement in Ohio, will help it to comply with the renewable energy standards established for the state.
Overall, FirstEnergy Solutions continue to play a key role in the development of renewable energy in the region with 476 MW of wind power under long-term contracts and 451 MW of pumped-storage hydro-power facilities.
The construction of the Blue Creek Wind Farm, located in Van Wert and Paulding Counties, is expected to be completed by year-end 2011. The project will include 152 Pennsylvania-built wind turbines of 2 MW each.
Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, FirstEnergy Corporation is a diversified electric utility holding company operating within a 36,100-square-mile contiguous service territory, including parts of Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, the company engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, as well as energy management and other energy-related services.
FirstEnergy is scheduled to release its fourth quarter and full-year 2010 earnings on February 16, 2011. The company expects to post 2010 adjusted earnings guidance in the range of $3.60–$3.70 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2010 stands at $3.65, which is well within the company’s projected guidance range. For the fourth quarter 2010, the Zacks Consensus earnings estimate is 79 cents.
FirstEnergy currently has a short term Zacks #2 Rank (Buy), on the belief that the company will benefit from the synergies of its proposed merger with Allegheny Energy Inc. (AYE). However, we prefer to remain on the sidelines with a ‘Neutral’ recommendation until the company’s merger proposal receives the necessary regulatory clearances.
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