Vasari Energy Today Announced That the Company Closed $500 Million of Commitments from Asian Partners to Invest In Solar and Wind Energy Development Projects
IRVINE, California, August 16, 2010

Vasari Energy today announced that the company has formed a partnership with Asian investors to invest $500 million in the development and construction of wind and solar projects in the U.S. and emerging markets. The partnership will invest in projects at all stages of the development cycle. The partnership will focus on investing in utility scale projects in high growth power markets.

The global targets and demand for renewable energy are enormous. "There are several investment routes into this market, but in our view, developers offer the best potential returns, as they are the lynch pin in delivering this growth," said Robert McKinsey, investment analyst at Vasari Energy.

Vasari Energy will invest in the spectrum of development activity from resource assessment, permitting and grid connections, through construction and operation. The company intends to make investments in projects across all or part of this spectrum. However, management is the main value driver at every stage of the spectrum. Most renewable energy projects are still small compared to conventional power. Large developers have advantages in securing equipment and finance, but can suffer from problems controlling development risk across a large portfolio, an inevitable lack of nimbleness and sometimes using the costs and processes found in large companies for relatively small projects. "Most renewable energy projects remain small and overlaying the costs and processes found in larger companies tends to impact project economics," said McKinsey.

Wind energy has already become a mainstream power generation source in many regions around the world, and it is being deployed in over 70 countries. In addition to environmental benefits, wind energy also provides a sustainable answer to increasing concerns about security of energy supply and volatile fossil fuel prices. Moreover, wind energy is becoming a substantial factor in economic development, providing more than 350,000 'green collar' jobs today both in direct and indirect employment. By 2020, this figure is projected to increase to over 2 million.

Wind energy makes sound economic sense. In contrast to new gas, coal or even nuclear power plants, the price for fuel over the total lifetime of a wind turbine is well known: it is zero. For conventional generation technologies, future price developments are a significant risk factor, and if current trends are any indication, they are likely to continue rising into the unforeseeable future.

Photovoltaic prices are falling and analysts expect that solar will soon reach grid parity. Reports covering the United States PV Market reveal that the U.S. solar market grew 36% in 2009, responding positively to the economic downfall. These results rank the country's solar photovoltaic market as the third largest in the world, behind Germany and Italy.

California is still driving the solar power market in the U.S., accounting for 53% of on-grid installations in 2009 and maintaining this position into 2010. The large number of state policy initiatives has created a fragmented regulations and incentive environment. However, states are doing their job of stimulating local markets. The dispersed funding sources mean the U.S. market does not does not carry the same level of risk compared to countries driven by a single national policy. Federal incentives are therefore due to play a much larger role in stimulating demand into 2012. Forecasts suggest the market will grow to between 4.5-5.5 GW depending on this given scenario. This is an average annual growth rate of 30% per annum.

About Vasari Energy

Vasari Energy is an integrated provider of engineering, procurement, construction, project management, and project financing services to the wind and solar power development industries. We believe that our business model allows us the opportunity to bring to our clients compelling business offerings that combine excellence in execution, safety, cost containment and experience.

For more information visit www.vasarienergy.com.