The electric power generating capacity owned by FDI-affiliate companies decreased substantially in 2006, as Scottish Power, the foreign direct investor with the most U.S. capacity the year before, sold much of its FDI affiliate, PacifiCorp, a utility in the western United States, to a U.S. company, MidAmerican Energy (see table below). Scottish Power acquired PacifiCorp (including its non-regulated electric power operations) in 1999, but in 2005 determined that shareholders’ interests were best served by a sale of the company, which was partially completed in 2006. However, the non-regulated electric power operations of PacifiCorp were not part of the March 2006 transaction, so Scottish Power still held on to fourth place in the list of foreign-owned electric power producers in 2006. Only one other foreign direct investor experienced a decline in U.S. electric power generating capacity in 2006. E.ON (Germany), which had the most generating capacity that year, had a relatively small decrease, as it exited the non-regulated electricity generating business in the United States.
In contrast, several foreign direct investors notably increased their U.S. electricity generating capacity. The increase was led by International Power (England and Wales) whose total increase was accounted for by its acquisition of the 632 MW coal-fired Coleto Creek generating plant in Texas (see table below). EPCOR Utilities (Canada) increased its capacity largely through purchasing Primary Energy Ventures; as part of that acquisition, EPCOR also acquired a stake in a U.S. electric power generator that was already largely owned by another foreign direct investor, Primary Energy Recycling (Canada). SUEZ (France), the foreign direct investor that added the third largest amount of capacity did so by acquiring partial ownership of a number of electric power generating facilities, several of them in partnership with Duke Energy. Overall, FDI affiliates’ share of U.S. generating capacity fell for the second straight year (see figure).
Electric Power Generating Capacity in the United States of
FDI-Affiliate Companies, 2005 and
2006
(Megawatts)
Foreign Parent (Country)
2005
2006
2005
- 2006 Percent Change
E.ON (Germany)
R7,700
7,500
-2.6
International Power (England & Wales)a
4,601
5,233
13.7
SUEZ (France)b
3,745
4,114
9.8
Scottish Powerc
9,618
2,204
-77.1
TransAlta (Canada)
R2,079
2,084
0.2
Brookfield Asset Management (Canada)
R1,218
1,359
11.6
Brookfield Asset Management (Canada) and
Emera (Canada)
R610
610
0.0
TransCanada
1,127
1,127
0.0
EPCOR Utilities (Canada)
549
967
76.2
EPCOR Utilities (Canada) and
Primary Energy Recycling (Canada)
0
283
NM
Primary Energy Recycling (Canada)
R284
0
-100.0
Babcock & Brown (Australia)d
R149
227
52.2
Iberdrola (Spain)
0
26
NM
Total FDI-Affiliate Companies
R31,680
25,733
-18.8
Total United States
978,020
986,215
0.8
Percent FDI-Affiliate Companies
R3.2
2.6
- -
aAs of
March 6, 2006, and March 7, 2007.
b2005
Includes some capacity in Mexico; 2006 is approximate.
c2006 is
approximate.
dAs of
December 2005 and July 31, 2006.
Notes:- = No data reported.- - = Not
applicable.E = Estimated.NM = Not meaningful.R = Revised data.** = Number less than 0.5 rounded to
zero.Values at year end.Calculations performed with unrounded data.
Sources:Companies:Company documents.U.S.
Totals:Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Annual 2007 DOE/EIA-0348(2007) (Washington DC, January 21, 2009),
Table ES.