HMC Affiliate Gulf Pacific Power, LLC to Acquire up to a 25% Interest in Desert Sunlight

BIRMINGHAM, AL--(Marketwired - March 23, 2016) - Harbert Management Corporation ("HMC") is pleased to announce that its affiliate investment fund Gulf Pacific Power, LLC ("GPP") has entered into definitive agreements with Sumitomo Corporation of Americas ("SCOA") to acquire up to a 25% ownership interest in Desert Sunlight Investment Holdings, LLC ("Desert Sunlight"). Desert Sunlight owns two solar photovoltaic power generation facilities totalling 550 MWac located 60 miles east of Palm Springs, in eastern Riverside County, CA. The two facilities began commercial operations in late 2014, selling all of their output to Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison under long-term contracts. 

GPP was formed to make equity investments in North American power assets and is backed by commitments from the California Public Employees' Retirement System ("CalPERS") and HMC affiliates. Desert Sunlight is the third investment for GPP, and follows earlier acquisitions of ownership interests in Northern Star Generation, a portfolio of seven electric generation facilities with a combined net capacity of 1,251 MW, and Astoria Energy II, a 575 MW combined cycle power plant in New York City.

"We are proud to be involved in Desert Sunlight. It is one of the premier contracted, renewable energy assets in North America," a spokesman for HMC said. "As one of the newest and largest solar power facilities in North America, Desert Sunlight will play an important role in helping California meet its goals of clean and reliable energy for many years to come."

"As a partner from construction through commercial operation of the Desert Sunlight project, we are incredibly pleased with the success of the operation as one of the largest producers of renewable energy in the United States. We believe the team at GPP will be an excellent partial owner of the project as it continues to make its important contributions in renewable energy," said Teru Miyazaki, Head of SCOA's Environment & Infrastructure Business Group.

K&L Gates acted as legal counsel to GPP for the transaction. SCOA was advised by BofA Merrill Lynch and Chadbourne & Parke, LLP.

About HMC
HMC, an alternative asset management firm with approximately $4.1 billion in Regulatory Assets Under Management as of February 29, 2016, is a privately owned firm formed in 1993 to sponsor alternative asset investment funds. HMC serves foundations and endowments, funds of funds, pension funds, financial institutions, insurance companies, family offices, and high net worth individuals across multiple asset classes. Investment strategies include independent power, European and U.S. real estate, seniors housing, venture capital, mezzanine debt, European growth capital, and public securities. Additional information about HMC can be found at www.harbert.net.

About Sumitomo Corporation of Americas
Established in 1952 and headquartered in New York City, Sumitomo Corporation of Americas (SCOA) has 8 offices in major U.S. cities. SCOA is the largest subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation, one of the world's leading traders of goods and services. As an integrated business enterprise, the firm has emerged as a major organizer of multinational projects, an expediter of ideas, an important international investor and financier, and a powerful force for distribution of products and global communications through a network of offices worldwide.

SCOA continues to grow its renewable energy business and has extensive experience developing, operating and owning power generating facilities such as wind, geothermal, biomass and solar businesses around the world. Investments include 200MW Mesquite Creek Wind Farm in western Texas; 845MW Shepherds Flat Wind Farm in Oregon; two Kansas wind farms, the 131MW Cimarron II and 168MW Ironwood projects; and Stanton wind project, a 120MW wind power facility in Texas.

For more information visit www.sumitomocorp.com.

About Sumitomo Corporation
Sumitomo Corporation is a leading global trading company with 110 locations in 66 countries and 23 locations in Japan. The entire Sumitomo Corporation Group consists of nearly 900 companies and more than 70,000 personnel. The SC business is continuously expanding into a diverse range of products and services. Its core business units are Metal Products, Transportation & Construction Systems, Environment & Infrastructure, Media, Network, Lifestyle Related Goods & Services, Mineral Resources, Energy, and Chemical & Electronics.