Ormat's Olkaria III Plant 1 Expansion Reaches Commercial Operation, Increasing Complex Capacity to 150 MW

RENO, Nev., June 27, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ormat Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ORA) announced today that the 11 MW Plant 1 expansion project in the Olkaria III complex in Kenya successfully completed its tests and commenced commercial operation on June 2, 2018.

Since 2000, Ormat has developed and expanded the Olkaria III complex in phases and increased its generating capacity from 13 MW to 139 MW by 2016. With the completion of the 11 MW expansion project, the total generating capacity of the complex has reached 150 MW. The scope of the project included drilling of new wells, adding a new Ormat Energy Converter unit, and optimizing other existing units.

The electricity generated from the expanded Plant 1 will be sold to Kenya Power and Lighting Company Limited under the terms of Plant 1 within the Olkaria III complex power purchase agreement (PPA). The new capacity from the expansion is expected to generate average annual revenues of approximately $8 million and to contribute to the Electricity segment performance.

Ormat financed the Olkaria III complex with a $310 million senior secured project finance loan and a $50 million subordinated loan in 2012 and 2016, respectively. Plant 1 expansion was financed by Ormat corporate sources and it is covered under a political insurance umbrella policy from leading global insurers in the private sector to cover exposure to certain political risks involved in operating in developing countries.

“The Plant 1 expansion project demonstrates once again the creativity of our engineering group that analyzed the Olkaria complex operation, equipment and PPA and came up with a plan that enabled us to increase the Olkaria III complex capacity in a short timeframe and at cost effective manner,” commented Isaac Angel, Ormat’s CEO.

“Kenya has a large geothermal potential along the East African Rift,” added Mr. Angel. “Tapping into this potential supports improved access to electricity and also contributes to the economy of Kenya. During peak construction of the Olkaria III Plant 1 expansion, more than 200 workers were hired locally. In addition, several employees were hired permanently and joined the Ormat team in the Olkaria III complex.”

About Ormat Technologies

With over five decades of experience, Ormat Technologies, Inc. is a leading geothermal Company and the only vertically integrated Company engaged in geothermal and recovered energy generation (REG), with the objective of becoming a leading global provider of renewable energy. The Company owns, operates, designs, manufactures and sells geothermal and REG power plants primarily based on the Ormat Energy Converter – a power generation unit that converts low-, medium- and high-temperature heat into electricity. With 77 U.S. patents, Ormat’s power solutions have been refined and perfected under the most grueling environmental conditions. Ormat has 530 employees in the United States and 770 overseas. Ormat’s flexible, modular solutions for geothermal power and REG are ideal for vast range of resource characteristics. The Company has engineered, manufactured and constructed power plants, which it currently owns or has installed to utilities and developers worldwide, totaling over 2,600 MW of gross capacity. Ormat’s current 862 MW generating portfolio is spread globally in the U.S., Kenya, Guatemala, Indonesia, Honduras, and Guadeloupe. In March 2017, Ormat expanded its operations to provide energy storage and energy management solutions, by leveraging its core capabilities and global presence as well as through its Viridity Energy Solutions Inc. subsidiary, a Philadelphia-based Company with nearly a decade of expertise and leadership in energy storage, demand response and energy management.

Ormat’s Safe Harbor Statement

Information provided in this press release may contain statements relating to current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about future events that are "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements generally relate to Ormat's plans, objectives and expectations for future operations and are based upon its management's current estimates and projections of future results or trends. Actual future results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, see "Risk Factors" as described in Ormat Technologies, Inc.'s Form 10-K/A filed with the SEC on June 19, 2018.

These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.