Innergex widens operations

Article Excerpt

INNERGEX RENEWABLE ENERGY $14.25 (Toronto symbol INE; Shares outstanding: 108.1 million; Market cap: $1.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield 4.6%; www.innergex.com) operates 31 hydroelectric plants, 19 wind farms and one solar power field. Those facilities are spread across Quebec, Ontario, B.C., Idaho and France. The company gets 64% of its power from the hydro plants, 35% from wind and 1% from solar. Innergex will now buy Alterra Power for $1.1 billion. That firm (symbol AXY on Toronto) is a renewable energy company operating in Canada, the U.S. and Iceland. Alterra brings eight operating projects (three hydro, two wind, two geothermal and one solar) and three more currently under construction (one each for wind, hydro and solar). It has another three in advanced stages (two wind and one geothermal) and is looking at several others. Growth by acquisition adds risk, especially with purchases as big as Alterra. But, Innergex lowers risk by buying profitable utilities that sell their power under government-guaranteed contracts. As…