Enterprising Investor
10 months ago
Expansion of Wind Project (1/19/24)
Aztec Land & Cattle Company (โAztecโ) has been notified that the lessee of the West Camp Wind Farm has entered into a power purchase agreement for an additional 100 MW bringing the total Wind Farm contracted amount to 500 MW.
The project, as increased, is expected to be built in a single phase. Construction is currently scheduled to commence in March 2024, and the project is expected to be operational by early 2026 (later than originally estimated due to the increased size). Construction and completion dates of the project are subject to change and may be affected by local and market conditions and by delays.
Aztec, as previously announced, will receive a per turbine construction impact fee, now based on 112 turbines, which is due shortly after commencement of construction. If the project becomes operational, Aztec will also receive the greater of a pre-established minimum rent or royalty payment based on a percentage of project revenues. Although we anticipate that the royalty payment would exceed the minimum rent, there is no assurance that it will. The amount of the royalty will depend upon the price of power, how long and consistently project turbines are in use, weather, and other factors; consequently, amounts received by Aztec from the wind lease may vary substantially over time. Accordingly, we intend to report project revenue to shareholders as the project comes online and revenue is earned, rather than attempt to speculate about what might occur in the future.
The lease is still in its developmental phase, and our lessee has the right to terminate the lease at any time. Once construction begins, and the lease enters the operational phase, the lease may be terminated, subject to the payment of a termination fee. The risk that the lessee will terminate is mitigated because the lessee has entered into a power purchase agreement. We do not know the terms of that agreement.
https://www.otcmarkets.com/otcapi/company/dns/news/document/72155/content
LouisDesyjr
8 years ago
Land use
I get the impression that the land has limited use because most of it is undeveloped and/or desert like area. None of the land appears to have any farming use since there is no mention of farming ever being done on any of it.
I think the real driver for any value is what happens in Snowflake, AZ; and that will depend on commerce. The best future for the town, based on local resources, would be if the paper mill was back in production.
The other possibility is if some company wanted to setup some kind of large office or manufacturing complex and needed all kinds of space for such a development.
I am still amazed that most companies will in an instant off shore production to low cost areas of the world, but then jam their HQ staff into some of the most expensive real estate in the world just to have a place for people to go to an office.
As an example, in the San Fracisco area, one bedroom condos an hour away from the Apple HQ are in the order of $800,000 to $1 million. If someone gets laid off from their job and then replaces it with a job that pays 'only' $100,000 per year, they are ruined and will not be able to pay their mortgage; while the same amount of money would buy them a house with a few acres of land and they would be able to save for retirement.
Louis J. Desy Jr.
LouisDesyjr
8 years ago
More about Aztec
The land is near a small town, Snowflake, Arizona. The population is less than 10,000 people. The big problem is that there does not seem to be much business in the area. While they have some kind of residential development approved, I can't see any large amount of construction since how many more house does one need for a town of less than 10,000 people?
One of the big employers was a paper mill, which also was a major customer for the short haul rail line, but that got bought by a Canadian company and then closed a few years later.
I think what the company needs is for there to be a demand for the land they own. While the rail helps, it is less than 10% of the market cap, so while the rail can add to profit, it can't really drive the stock price. (One way to correct the problem of the rail line profit being overshadowed by the size of the rest of the company could be to spin it off into its own company with its own common stock trading on the public markets.)
I think what would get the company moving on all fronts would be if the price of paper rises, and the paper mill reopens; otherwise one would need to wait for something else in the area to create a demand for more rail service and more residential housing.
Louis J. Desy Jr.