Innergex Renewable Energy has closed a US$100 million bridge loan for the Hale Kuawehi battery energy storage system (BESS) project in Hawaii.
The independent power producer (IPP) secured the loan with First Citizens Bank to support the BESS project through what the company says are its final stages.
Once commissioned, the project will enter into a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Hawaii Electric Light Company (HELCO). The project is also eligible to receive a federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) sized to approximately 30% of the project’s eligible costs.
Michel Letellier, president and CEO of Innergex said of the project: “Our Hale Kuawehi solar and battery storage project is nearing completion. With the construction phase now fully completed, we are focused on advancing the project toward full commissioning.”
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The company is now working on bringing the BESS project to operational status by Q1 2025. Innergex said the bridge loan is expected to be repaid with the proceeds from a future long-term non-recourse financing after the project reaches commercial operation.
The Hale Kuawehi project’s progress could mean good news for Hawaii. According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the state consumes nine times more energy than it produces, with four-fifths of that consumption being petroleum. And the move to large-scale clean energy has not been without its challenges and setbacks.
In November, San Francisco, Calfornia-headquartered Clearway Energy withdrew three hybrid solar and storage projects from Hawaiian Electric Co’s (HECO) renewable energy procurement (Premium access article), citing the investor-owned utility’s (IOU) “ongoing financial uncertainty.”
This followed the June news that AES Corporation withdrew one of its solar and battery storage hybrid projects from the HECO procurement (Premium access article).
These projects were a part of the 2.1GWh of combined energy storage projects that HECO entered into contract negotiations for, reported by Energy-Storage.news in December 2023.
Innergex is active elsewhere in the Americas too, with it and system integrator Prevalon Energy agreeing to nearly double the capacity of BESS capacity at two sites in Chile with existing operational facilities in November.
