Constellation buys 2 natural gas generation plants

Posted: 10:19 am Fri, April 16, 2010
By Danielle Ulman
Daily Record Business Writer

Constellation Energy Group Inc. has agreed to purchase two natural gas generation facilities in Texas for $365 million, the company said Friday.

The plants — Colorado Bend Energy Center and Quail Run Energy Center — are owned by Houston-based Navasota Holdings. Constellation will add 1,100 megawatts of capacity to its 7,100 megawatt generation portfolio at the close of the deal, which the company said is expected in the second quarter. One megawatt of energy can power 1,000 homes.

In a news release, Baltimore-based Constellation said the acquisition is on target with its strategy of spending up to $1 billion over the next 12 to 24 months to acquire assets where it sells more power than it generates.

The deal gives Constellation a physical presence in Texas, where the company’s wholesale and retail supply businesses sell a “significant amount of power.”

“These modern, well-managed natural gas assets represent an important addition to our generation portfolio and are an ideal fit to support our expanding commercial businesses in Texas,” Mayo A. Shattuck III, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Constellation, said in the release.