US-based global wood pellet major Enviva Partners LP has received an offer to acquire the recently completed 600 000 tonne per annum capacity Sampson pellet plant in North Carolina along with off-take deals.
US- based wood pellet major Enviva Partners, LP has announced that Enviva Wilmington Holdings, LLC, a joint venture between an affiliate of Enviva Holdings, LP and affiliates of John Hancock Life Insurance Company, has offered to sell the entity which owns the wood pellet production plant in Sampson County, North Carolina, along with a 10-year, 420 000 tonne per annum off-take contract with an affiliate of Danish energy major DONG Energy, to Enviva Partners. The transaction also includes a 15-year, 95 000 tonne per annum off-take contract with the Hancock JV and a third-party shipping contract.
According to a statement, the final purchase price and other terms are subject to negotiation with, and approval of, a “Conflicts Committee”comprised solely of independent directors to evaluate the offer. Enviva Partners currently expects the final purchase price to be between US$170 million and US$180 million. The transaction is expected to close on or about 3 January 2017, assuming that terms of the acquisition are agreed upon.
Construction of the ≈ 600 000 tonne per annum capacity Sampson plant is complete and it is in production. The plant is expected to produce approximately 500 000 tonnes in 2017 and to reach its full production capacity in 2019. Enviva Partners currently owns and operates six plants in US with a combined production capacity of ≈ 2.3 million tonnes as well as a deep-water marine terminal at the Port of Chesapeake, Virginia.
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