News

Sweden's Electrolux AB paid $3.3 billion in cash for General Electric's appliances business. GE's century-old household appliance business could help the Swedish company expand beyond its core European market, where growth has trailed that in North America. The deal will be financed by a bridge facility, and the company plans a rights issue to raise about 25 percent of the price after the deal's expected closing next year.

Duke Energy committed $500 million to a major expansion of solar power in North Carolina. The company will acquire and construct three solar facilities - totaling 128 MW of capacity - including the largest solar PV facility east of the Mississippi River. Duke Energy also signed PPAs with five new solar projects in the state, representing 150 MW of capacity. Together, the eight projects will have a capacity of 278 MW.

Siemens received an order for the turnkey delivery of the grid connection for the Dudgeon offshore wind farm. The customers are the Norwegian utilities Statoil and Statkraft, which are jointly implementing the wind farm off the coast of the U.K. Siemens will supply the entire power transmission system, including the two transformer substations - one onshore and one offshore - for the 402-MW project. Siemens had previously received an order in August to deliver 67 wind turbines in the new 6-MW class as well as to maintain the wind farm.

PPL Montana has agreed to sell its hydroelectric facilities to NorthWestern Energy. Montana Public Service Commission voted to prepare an order approving NorthWestern Energy's request to purchase the facilities. The agreement includes PPL Montana's 11 hydroelectric power plants, which have a combined generating capacity of more than 630 MW, as well as the company's Hebgen Lake reservoir. PPL Montana and NorthWestern have secured required approvals from FERC, as well as the necessary clearance from the antitrust enforcement agencies.