Suzlon sells wind farm to EverPower.

A week after Suzlon Energy acquired the 240-MW Big Sky Wind Farm in Illinois, US, from Edison Mission Energy, it has sold it to EverPower Wind Holdings Inc in an all-cash deal.

The sale is part of the wind turbine maker's plan to divest non-critical assets and mop up Rs. 1,500 crore over the next 12-18 months. The money raised is to be used both for working capital and paying off debt.

The April 2 acquisition of Big Sky was to settle dues of nearly $210 million (Rs. 1,260 crore) that Edison had received from Suzlon as a long-term loan. According to the terms of the original $484-million deal inked in October 2008, the loan was to be repaid in August 2012. Following the default, Suzlon went for litigation, a process that could have taken years to settle. Recent sale suggests that Suzlon has chosen to take the cash, and absorb some losses, rather than waiting it out.

Though Suzlon has not disclosed the proceeds of recent deal, a person close to the development estimated it to be around $100 million.

HBL