PVTIME – Recurrent Energy, a global developer and owner of solar and energy storage assets, announced today that it has closed project financing for its 134 MW (100 MWac) Liberty Solar project. The project is currently under construction in Liberty County, Texas, about 50 miles northeast of Houston, and is expected to reach operation in 2024.
Rabobank acted as the Coordinating Lead Arranger and the Joint Lead Arranger. Nord LB and U.S. Bank acted as Joint Lead Arrangers. Rabobank, Nord LB and U.S. Bank will provide construction debt, a letter of credit facility and a term facility, totaling $120 million. U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance, a subsidiary of U.S. Bank, will provide the tax equity totaling $80 million.
Paul de Waard, Executive Director, Rabobank, said, “We are proud to successfully close another project financing with an industry-leading developer like Recurrent Energy and support its continuous growth across the U.S. and around the world. Recurrent Energy has been a valued Rabobank client for nearly a decade and the Liberty project is a perfect example of our partnership and support of the company’s renewable goals, which align perfectly with Rabobank’s commitment to the global energy transition.”
Eric Barr, U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance Vice President of Business Development for Environmental Finance, said, “We are thrilled to deepen our long-standing relationship with Recurrent while expanding clean energy infrastructure in the state of Texas. Recurrent’s partnership is critical in our efforts to create a more sustainable future for communities nationwide.”
Previously, Recurrent Energy announced that it has secured a power purchase agreement for 100% of the project’s production capacity via an aggregated virtual power purchase agreement. Liberty Solar will expand solar energy capacity in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) region, which includes most of Liberty County where Liberty Solar is located. Solar energy currently makes up only 1% of the resource mix in MISO.
Ismael Guerrero, CEO of Recurrent Energy, said, “Liberty Solar is the second project financing that Recurrent Energy has closed in North America this summer, indicating execution on our strategy to retain greater ownership of projects in select markets. Moreover, Liberty Solar is a strong project in MISO, a growing market for solar energy. We value our long-standing relationship with Rabobank, Nord LB and U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance and we are grateful to reach this milestone together on another project.”
CohnReznick Capital and Latham & Watkins advised Recurrent Energy on the transaction. Milbank LLP represented the lenders. Foley & Lardner represented U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance.
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