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SunEdison of Beltsville, a leading solar energy services provider, is set to be acquired by MEMC Electronic Materials of St. Peters, Mo., for $200 million, with MEMC officials saying the company will remain in Prince George's County.

For privately held SunEdison, the deal provides needed capital. For publicly traded MEMC, it provides a third engine of growth, via solar plant development, according to officials at MEMC, which provides silicon wafers to the semiconductor and solar industries.

The purchase price comprises 70 percent cash and 30 percent MEMC stock, plus up to an additional $89 million in performance incentives. The agreement also calls for $17 million in employee retention payments, according to MEMC information. The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, is scheduled to close by the end of December.

"SunEdison has successfully built about 300 solar power plants representing approximately 80 [megawatts] of generating capacity on the rooftops and grounds of customers in the United States, Canada and Europe," Carlos Domenech, COO of SunEdison, said in a statement.

"Our business is highly scalable and will be able to grow substantially, capitalizing on our more than 1.5 [gigawatts] of pipeline, backlog and leads with a financially strong, technically sophisticated partner like MEMC, which also has a competitive cost structure in upstream materials," Domenech said in the statement. "This combination will greatly accelerate our goal of making solar energy cost competitive with grid prices."

SunEdison has worked with the Prince George's County Economic Development Corp. on a green jobs initiative and was being considered among the green businesses that could receive tax credits through a new law.

"We hope [SunEdison continues] to be a vibrant and integral part in the greening of Prince George's County," said Kwasi G. Holman, CEO of the economic development corporation. He said his chief concern is whether SunEdison will remain in the county.

Bill Michalek, spokesman for MEMC, said Tuesday there are no plans to move SunEdison.

SunEdison officials were not available for further comment on how the acquisition will affect the company.

Ahmad Chatila, CEO of MEMC, said in the statement that building upon research and development with SunEdison could reduce pricing for MEMC and drive technological innovation.

"By making solar power more affordable and easy to obtain, we expect to tap into a large pent-up demand," Chatila said.

MEMC reported a third-quarter net loss of $64.9 million. Sales exceeded $2 billion last year, when the company recorded a profit of $390.3 million.

During a conference call with investors and analysts, Chatila said he believes SunEdison can accelerate its own growth through MEMC capital. MEMC investors emphasized how difficult it can be for companies such as SunEdison to get credit in this market, making MEMC's financial support even more important.

SunEdison received about $30 million in debt financing in 2008 through backers such as Greylock Partners; HSH Nordbank AG; Applied Ventures; Black River Commodity Clean Energy Investment Fund; MissionPoint Capital Partners; and Allco Renewable Energy. Its customers include retailers Kohl's, Staples and Whole Foods Market.

SunEdison will continue to operate with the SunEdison name as a subsidiary of MEMC, according to company information.