Italy’s Enel buying US wind, solar plants for USD1bn

ROME: Italian power giant Enel said Saturday it is buying a “portfolio” of US wind and solar plants with a capacity of 830 megawatts (MW) for around USD1 billion.

It said it was buying the plants, which have an expected average output of around 2.1 TWh (Terawatt-hours) per year, from Excelsior Energy Capital, a renewable energy fund.

The deal is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2026, Enel said in a statement.

The acquisition would bring Enel’s installed capacity from renewable sources in North America to around 13 GW, it added.

Enel’s renewables arm, Enel Green Power, has a capacity of 68 GW globally, including wind, solar, geothermal and hydroelectric power as well as energy storage facilities.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that renewable energy sources are unreliable and has sought to block new offshore wind projects in the US.

The Trump administration has instead championed coal, which has long been considered the dirtiest fossil fuel and a scourge in terms of climate change.

On Friday, the Trump administration finalised a rule repealing stricter environmental standards on coal and oil-fired power plants enacted by his predecessor Joe Biden, saying the move restores “American energy dominance”.