Panoche Energy Center LLC is a special-purpose, bankruptcy-remote operating company formed to own and operate a 400-megawatt (MW) combustion turbine power plant near Fresno, Calif. Panoche is owned by U.S. Power Fund II L.P., a private equity fund managed by EIF Management LLC (not rated). Panoche earns revenue through a long-term power purchase agreement (PPA) with Pacific Gas&Electric Co. (PG&E) that expires in 2029. NAES Corp. (not rated) conducts day-to-day operations and maintenance. A contractual services agreement with GE Energy, an affiliate of General Electric Co. (GE), covers major maintenance. Since we published our Research Update on Panoche on March 30, 2016, two material developments have occurred related to the project's dispute with PG&E over who bears carbon-compliance
