Origin sells Indo geothermal for $40m

The sale will help Origin avert a downgrade to “junk” status

Origin Energy is continuing with its asset sales, banking $40 million from the sale of its stake in an Indonesian geothermal project.

Origin will offload its 50 percent of OTP Geothermal, which is part of a consortium developing a 240MW geothermal power project in North Sumatra. OTP

OTP, which has 95 percent of the project,  is a joint venture with Tata Power International, a unit of the  Indian conglomerate.

The buyer is Indonesian firm KS Orka Renewables.

Origin has a strategy to reduce debt with $800 million in asset sales and focus on two core businesses in integrated gas and energy market retailing.

As part of this strategy Origin recently inked a power purchase agreement with the new Moree solar farm in NSW.

Origin recently narrowly escaped a Moody’s downgrade to “junk” status because the ratings agency was encouraged by the potential of future asset sales.