Greenbacker Acquires Solar Portfolio and Storage Project in Colorado

Greenbacker has purchased the rights to a 29 MWdc / 22 MWac pre-operational solar project in combination with 1.3 MWac of a battery storage project.

Greenbacker Renewable Energy Company has announced that, through a wholly-owned subsidiary, it has purchased the rights to a 29 MWdc / 22 MWac pre-operational solar project in combination with 1.3 MWac of a battery storage project. The project, known as Rawhide Prairie Solar, is located in Larimer County, Colorado. The offtaker is the Platte River Power Authority.

The project is expected to reach COD in Q4 2020. DEPCOM Power is the EPC contractor and will provide O&M services contractually for the next seven years. This is the second battery storage acquisition and the first combination of solar and storage purchase by Greenbacker.

“We’re experiencing phenomenal growth in our solar portfolio and very pleased with our growing battery storage allocation,” said Charles Wheeler, CEO of Greenbacker. “We closed the acquisition in under two months, which we were able to do by leveraging our team’s technical expertise in due diligence for an under-construction project and Greenbacker’s strong financing relationships. We look forward to working with DEPCOM’s industry leading team to complete the build and operation of the plant.”

With the acquisition of Rawhide Prairie Solar, the firm will own approximately 592.8 MW of generating capacity (including assets that are to be constructed), comprising 192.6 MW of wind facilities, 379.0 MW of utility-scale and distributed solar facilities, 12.0 MW of biomass facilities, and 9.2 MW of battery storage.

In June, the firm had announced the acquisition of Pacifica Storage LLC, a 7.9MW / 16.5MWh portfolio of sixteen operating and to-be-constructed behind-the-meter energy storage systems from Stem, Inc., a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven energy storage services. The acquisition marked Greenbacker’s initial strategic expansion into the energy optimisation sector, enhancing the services it provides to power off-takers and consumers in California and positioning the firm to increase value for its shareholders.

“Expanding into energy storage is a logical next step in our acquisition strategy,” Wheeler had said at the time.