Calpine to Establish Canadian Income Trust Fund
CALGARY, Alberta, July 23 /CNW/ -- Calpine Corporation
(NYSE: CPN), a leading North American power producer, announced today plans to
establish a Canadian income trust fund -- Calpine Power Income Fund. The
proposed Fund will indirectly own interests in two of Calpine's Canadian power
generating assets, one of which is under construction, and will make a loan to
a Calpine subsidiary which owns Calpine's other Canadian power generating
asset. Combined, these assets represent approximately 550 net megawatts of
power generating capacity. Calpine has filed a preliminary prospectus with
securities commissions in Canada for the sale of Trust Units of the Calpine
Power Income Fund.
The power generating assets to be acquired by the Calpine Power Income
Fund are a 100 percent interest in the 225-megawatt Island Cogeneration
Facility located in British Columbia, near Campbell River and a 100% interest
in the 300-megawatt combined-cycle Calgary Energy Centre, currently under
construction in Calgary, Alberta. The Calpine Power Income Fund will also
make a loan to a Calpine subsidiary for its 50 percent indirect interest in
the 50-megawatt Whitby Cogeneration Facility, located in Whitby, Ontario.
Calpine plans to retain a substantial interest in the Calpine Power Income
Fund and the assets. Proceeds from the offering that are received by Calpine
will be used for general corporate purposes.
The offering will be led jointly by Scotia Capital Inc. and CIBC World
Markets Inc. on behalf of a syndicate of underwriters that includes National
Bank Financial Inc., TD Securities Inc., Canaccord Capital Corporation and
HSBC Securities (Canada) Inc.
The securities offered have not been registered under the U.S. Securities
Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States
absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration
requirements. A preliminary prospectus relating to these securities has been
filed with securities commissions or similar authorities in certain provinces
of Canada but has not yet become final for the purpose of a distribution to
the public. This news release shall not constitute an offer to buy these
securities in any state of the United States or province of Canada, and with
respect to a province of Canada, prior to the time of a receipt for the final
prospectus or other authorization is obtained from the securities commission
or similar authority in such province.
Based in San Jose, Calif., Calpine Corporation is an independent power
company that is dedicated to providing customers with clean, efficient,
natural gas-fired power generation. It generates and markets power through
plants it develops, owns and operates in 21 states in the United States, three
provinces in Canada and in the United Kingdom. Calpine also is the world's
largest producer of renewable geothermal energy, and it owns 1.3 trillion
cubic feet equivalent of proved natural gas reserves in Canada and the United
States. The company was founded in 1984 and is publicly traded on the New
York Stock Exchange under the symbol CPN. For more information about Calpine,
visit its website at www.calpine.com.
This news release discusses certain matters that may be considered
"forward-looking" statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the
Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended, including statements regarding the intent, belief or
current expectations of Calpine Corporation ("the Company") and its
management. Prospective investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking
statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve a number of
risks and uncertainties that could materially affect actual results such as,
but not limited to, (i) the timing and extent of deregulation of energy
markets and the rules and regulations adopted on a transitional basis with
respect thereto (ii) the timing and extent of changes in commodity prices for
energy, particularly natural gas and electricity (iii) commercial operations
of new plants that may be delayed or prevented because of various development
and construction risks, such as a failure to obtain the necessary permits to
operate, failure of third-party contractors to perform their contractual
obligations or failure to obtain financing on acceptable terms (iv)
unseasonable weather patterns that produce reduced demand for power (v)
systemic economic slowdowns, which can adversely affect consumption of power
by businesses and consumers (vi) cost estimates are preliminary and actual
costs may be higher than estimated (vii) a competitor's development of
lower-cost generating gas-fired power plants (viii) risks associated with
marketing and selling power from power plants in the newly-competitive energy
market (ix) the successful exploitation of an oil or gas resource that
ultimately depends upon the geology of the resource, the total amount and
costs to develop recoverable reserves and operations factors relating to the
extraction of natural gas, (*) the effects on the Company's business resulting
from the liquidity in the trading and power industry, (xi) the Company's
ability to access the capital markets on similar attractive terms, (xii) the
direct or indirect effects on the Company's business of a lowering of its
credit rating (or actions it may take in response to changing credit ratings
criteria), including, increased collateral requirements, refusal by the
Company's current or potential counterparties to enter into transactions with
it and its inability to obtain credit or capital in amounts or on favorable
terms, and (xiii) other risks identified from time-to-time in our reports and
registration statements filed with the SEC, including the risk factors
identified in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
December 31, 2001, which can be found on the Company's web site at
www.calpine.com. All information set forth in this news release is as of
today's date, and the Company undertakes no duty to update this information. |
