Big deals of the month.
- A Silicon Valley solar company announced its plans to build a $340 million photovoltaic manufacturing plant in Wilsonville. The company, SoloPower, expects to eventually employ about 500 people and reach a capacity of 300 megawatts. The company is seeking a $20 million tax credit and a loan for another $20 million from the state. There are also local incentives and the possibility of a federal loan guarantee.
- OneCalifornia Bank completed the acquisition of ShoreBank Pacific, based in Ilwaco, Wash., with a large presence in Portland, from the Chicago-based ShoreBank Corp. Touted as the nation’s first bank focused on sustainability, ShoreBank Pacific had $190 million in assets and 30 employees when the deal was announced. The new entity will have about $300 million in assets.
- Gerding Edlen Development Co. transferred the Bellevue Towers to lenders, a consortium led by Morgan Stanley. The Portland real estate developer saw just 118 of the tower’s 539 units sell since they were built two years ago with a $275 million loan. The towers, east of Seattle, are the region’s biggest condo project ever.
- Portland shipbuilder Vigor Industrial announced it will acquire Seattle’s Todd Shipyards Corp. in a $130 million cash deal. Todd employs about 800 people. Vigor offered $22.27 a share, a 31% premium over its average share price over the previous three months. The combined company of about 1,800 employees will be the largest marine services company in the Pacific Northwest.
- Beaverton Foods bought Pacific Farms, a wasabi grower originally based in Florence, for an undisclosed price. The acquisition makes the 80-year-old family-owned manufacturer of horseradish and specialty mustards the largest processor of wasabi products in the nation.
