2026-10-09
- Middle River Power (MRP) announced on 2026-10-06 that it had closed the acquisition of the 427 MW Panoche Energy Center in Firebaugh, California, from an Ares Infrastructure Equity fund.
- The plant is described as a fully contracted natural gas generation facility; the purchase price was not disclosed.
- MRP expects to apply its hybridization strategy, pairing the plant’s thermal capacity with energy storage.
- With Midway-Sunset (240 MW) and Brush (250 MW), MRP’s 2026 western additions exceed 900 MW.
Middle River Power (MRP) has acquired the 427 MW Panoche Energy Center in Firebaugh, California, from an Ares Infrastructure Equity fund, part of Ares Management Corporation. MRP announced the closing on 2026-10-06, and Power Technology reported it on 2026-10-07. The plant is described as a fully contracted natural gas facility, and MRP plans to pair its thermal capacity with energy storage to serve utility, data centre and industrial customers. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Panoche Energy Center is a natural gas power plant in Firebaugh, western Fresno County, California. The current reports do not specify its configuration, but earlier sources, including POWER Magazine and a Power Technology plant profile, describe it as a simple-cycle plant with four GE LMS100 combustion turbines. Those sources state that it entered commercial operation on 2009-06-01, was developed by Energy Investors Funds, and was built with Kiewit Engineering & Design as the EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) contractor. GE supplied the turbines and Brush Electrical Machines the generators, and output was sold under a 20-year PPA (Power Purchase Agreement) with Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E). This description relies on earlier material, and the current counterparty and contract terms were not confirmed in the October reports.
Keith Derman of Ares said Ares was proud to have supported the asset since its development 20 years ago. The buyer, MRP, is a U.S. independent power producer (IPP) acquired by Partners Group on behalf of its clients in 2025.
MRP said it expects to apply its hybridization strategy at Panoche, pairing thermal capacity with storage. According to Pulse 2, this is a plan under evaluation rather than a committed project, and no storage is currently described at the site.
- Capacity acquired: 427 MW, according to MRP’s announcement.
- Location: Firebaugh, California; contract status is described as fully contracted.
- MRP’s 2026 additions: Panoche 427 MW, Midway-Sunset (Kern County, California) 240 MW and Brush (Morgan County, Colorado) 250 MW, totalling more than 900 MW.
- Earlier technical data: four GE LMS100 units, about 400 to 432 MW depending on the source, commercial operation in June 2009 and a 20-year PPA.
- POWER Magazine’s earlier profile cited operating limits of up to 5,000 hours per year at a 57% service factor, up to 365 starts and shutdowns a year, and plant test data showing a cold start to full load in 9.5 minutes.
- Purchase price: not disclosed.
- The differing capacity figures (400, 432 and 427 MW) may reflect different dates or rating bases, but the sources reviewed do not explain the difference.
Timeline
- 2009-06-01 — Panoche Energy Center enters commercial operation, according to earlier sources.
- 2025 — Partners Group acquires Middle River Power.
- 2026 — MRP adds the Midway-Sunset and Brush sites earlier in the year.
- 2026-10-06 — MRP announces closing of the Panoche acquisition.
- 2026-10-07 — Power Technology reports the transaction.
Note
A simple-cycle plant generates power with gas turbines alone, without a steam cycle recovering exhaust heat, so it starts quickly but is typically less efficient than a combined-cycle plant. Hybridization here means pairing a generating plant with energy storage.