MEMC to buy SunEdison

MEMC acquisition of SunEdison signals entry into solar project development, PPAs, EPC and O&M services, serving utility and commercial clients like Duke Energy and Wal-Mart across the United States, Europe, and Canada.

Silicon wafer maker MEMC plans to buy SunEdison for $200 million in cash and stock, MEMC said.

The acquisition would push St. Peters, Mo.-based MEMC into a new territory of developing solar power projects. SunEdison has been an early player in the business, with initiatives such as new solar plants in Utah, and snagged high-profiled customers such as Duke Energy and Wal-Mart.

SunEdison's customers either buy electricity from projects owned and operated by SunEdison, a model seen amid distributed solar acquisitions today, or hire SunEdison to build and operate their own solar power farms.

Beltsville, Maryland-based SunEdison has completed about 300 solar power projects, totaling about 80 megawatts in generation capacities, even as peers unveil a 550 MW project to scale further, in the United States, Europe and Canada.

SunEdison will get to keep its name and operate as a subsidiary of MEMC amid deals like California project stakes that reshape portfolios.

The companies expect to complete the acquisition by the end of this year.

SunEdison has carried out layoffs over the past year as the solar market's growth has slowed, with some suppliers opting to retool for solar products to adapt, thanks to recession and a dramatic cut in government incentives in Spain.

Some of its former executives have gone on to start a solar panel manufacturing business, Sunworks Solar in San Francisco.

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