Panda Power opens $420 Million Fund for Solar and Natural Gas Projects

Panda Power Funds, the Dallas-based investing company, has recently announced that it had raised a $420 million private equity fund which the company is going to invest into new and already existing solar energy and natural gas project which activate in Texas and in other high-growth states. The company intends to use the money from this fund in order to focus in constructing, capitalizing and maintaining the infrastructure.

Some of the projects the company is very happy to invest in are based in Texas. These are two natural gas projects, based in the towns of Sherman and Temple. Based on the calculations made by the companies, these two projects are to generate a total amount of 1950 megawatts. This energy is going to be one of the cleanest natural gas-fueled energy produced by power plants in the United States.

Todd W. Carter, the senior partner at Panda Power Funds, has stated the following in a press release: “The closing of our first private equity fund, in this capital market environment, is a validation of the business strategy, market knowledge and industry relationships developed by an executive team that has worked closely together for many years. We are well positioned to execute our business plan and to take advantage of the significant opportunities we see in the power sector.”

Although the fund has only recently been raised, some of the money gathered in this round of funding has already been spent. The amount of $94 million from the fund has already been used on funding the 20 megawatt Pilesgrove Solar farm in New Jersey. This actually is the largest solar farm in the Northeast of the United States and has more than 71.000 panels which provide the system the capacity of providing power for more than 5.100 homes, according to NJ.com.

Panda Power Funds is a funding company which has been launched in the month of April 2010. The company has always been intended to invest in the development of the natural gas power generation and solar energy projects. By the moment, the company has sustained and built energy projects with more than $2.8 billion in financing which the company has invested since its start, back in 1982. At the moment, the senior management and the energy professionals of Panda Energy have already been transferred to the new fund organization. One of the biggest accomplishments of the company is that of building two of the largest gas-fueled electric generation facilities in the US. These two facilities generate over 4.500 megawatts, which is a huge amount. Over the years, the company has raised almost $6 billion in order to build and develop more than 9.000 megawatts of generating capacity. It has been in 2005 that the Newsweek magazine has rates Panda as one of the ten most eco-friendly energy companies which are based in the US. Up to day, the company is sustaining especially the projects which focus on providing renewable energy.