25 September 2006 -- Aquila, Inc. agreed to purchase a 580-MW, natural gas-fired power plant, known as the Aries plant, in Pleasant Hill, Missouri, US, from Calpine Corp. for $158.5 million.

The parties submitted the purchase agreement to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York on Friday. The transaction is subject to bankruptcy court approval, following an opportunity for other parties to submit higher or better bids under bidding procedures adopted by the court. If the court adopts the procedural schedule proposed by the parties, the transaction is expected to close in December of this year. The transaction is also subject to approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Aquila said it intends to utilize the Aries facility as an intermediate-capacity power plant. Intermediate power plants are generally used to provide power over an extended period of time to supplement baseload coal and nuclear power plants.