AES sold its Kazakhstan coal assets

ARLINGTON, Va., June 2 (UPI) -- U.S. company AES Corp. sold its interest in the AES Ekibastuz power plant in Kazakhstan.

In addition to the plant, AES also sold its interest in the Maikuben coal mine in Kazakhstan to Kazakhmys Plc. for $1.1 billion, the firm announced.

AES will also receive up to $381 million over a three-year period to manage and operate the facilities acquired by Kazakhmys, Kazakhstan's largest producer of copper.

Kazakhmys has its corporate headquarters in London and operations in Kazakhstan and Germany.

AES will maintain ownership and operation of its other facilities located in eastern Kazakhstan, which include thermal and hydro generation capacity of approximately 2,688 megawatts and a distribution business with more than 400,000 customers.

"The decision to sell a portion of our business in Kazakhstan is consistent with our focus on portfolio management and how we assess the long-term potential of each of our businesses in the context of our broader portfolio," said Paul Hanrahan, AES president and chief executive officer.