Asset manager Capital Dynamics has purchased a 400MW solar-plus-storage complex by 8minute Solar Energy, contracted to supply power to the city of Los Angeles at ultra-low prices.
8minute remains the developer and an equity partner in the Eland Solar & Storage project, located 70 miles north of Los Angeles, and will oversee engineering, design, procurement and construction. The firm has yet to select an EPC contractor, PV Tech understands.
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Capital Dynamics, meanwhile, will be the facility's long-term majority equity investor.
The project, which boasts a 300MW/1,200MWh energy storage facility, is set to reach full commercial operations in 2023. Its backers claim it is the second-largest solar project in the US.
The Eland project is contracted to supply power to utility Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) at record-breaking fixed tariffs for solar (US$0.01997/kWh) and energy storage (US$0.013/kWh) for a period of 25 years.
“Eland is a breakthrough project, setting records for low-cost solar, and incorporates a large battery energy storage centre that demonstrates solar's ability to power California's vibrant and growing economy 24/7,” 8minute CEO and president Tom Buttgenbach said in a statement this week.
8minute retains the right to repurchase a portion of the project upon its completion.
The move adds to a growing portfolio shared by the Swiss asset manager and Californian solar developer. Earlier this month, the pair announced the purchase of a 300MWac/873MWdc project in Nevada, due to be commissioned in late 2021.
Storage-backed renewables are central to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s plan to replace gas plants with renewable energy, in order to reach its 100%-by-2045 clean energy target.
