Matrix Renewables, the platform backed by private equity firm TPG, has secured tax equity financing of US$92 million for two solar-plus-storage projects in California with 80MWh of energy storage.
The tax equity financing is being provided by Bank of America, first covered by Energy-Storage.news‘ sister site PV Tech. Tax equity financing means an investment by a passive equity investor looking to achieve an internal rate of return (IRR) based mainly on US federal income tax benefits from a particular asset class, in this case renewable energy.
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The financing is going to the Gaskell West 2 and 3 projects in Kern County, California, which are set to come online in late 2022. They total 143MWdc of solar PV with 80MWh of attached lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity.
The two projects hold five long term power purchase agreements (PPAs) with utilities and cities in California, Matrix said.
Most energy storage projects in California garner revenue through PPAs, specifically long-term resource adequacy (RA) power supply agreements with investor-owned utilities and community choice aggregators (CCAs), as well as merchant wholesale energy trading and a small amount of grid ancillary services.
Martrix acquired the Gaskell West 2 and 3 projects from Recurrent Energy, the development arm of another large module manufacturer Canadian Solar, last month. Recurrent Energy sold Gaskell West 1 to developer Southern Power in 2018.
Canadian Solar subsidiary CSI solar will provide a turnkey battery storage solution, including the supply, installation and commission of the system.
The Gaskell sites are Matrix’s first foray into the US market, with the company having previously focused on Europe, mainly Spain and Italy, and South America. It is also its second major announced project with a storage component, after committing to invest in three solar sites totalling 150MW with storage in Huelva, Spain, in February last year.
Madrid-based Matrix Renewables was formed in 2020 when TPG, through its impact investment arm The Rise Fund, acquired 1GW of solar PV projects from one of the largest module manufacturers in the world, Trina Solar. You can read PV Tech‘s coverage of the deal here.
The company was advised on the financing deal by CohnReznick Capital and Norton Rose Fulbright.