Strata Clean Energy Begins Operations on Two Tax Equity Financed Battery Energy Storage Systems under the Inflation Reduction Act
DURHAM, N.C., June 21, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Strata Clean Energy (Strata) has successfully closed on all installments of tax equity financing for two standalone battery energy storage systems. Strata partnered with United Community Bank (UCB) and Enhanced Capital on an $8.7 million investment for the Georgia and Springfield Vermont projects, each of which have 5MW/10MWh of storage capacity. The first installment of financing closed in March, making the sites among the first standalone storage projects to be funded using investment tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act. Both sites have now commenced commercial operations and the final installment of financing has closed.
"United Community Bank is proud to support Strata Clean Energy through the tax equity investments in the battery storage systems," said Clayton Summers, Renewable Energy Finance Team Lead at United Community Bank. "We’ve enjoyed partnering with both the Strata Clean Energy and Enhanced Capital teams during the process and are excited about future partnership opportunities to deliver clean energy solutions that benefit the public and serve our communities."
"Our Capital Markets team, alongside our partners at Enhanced Capital and United Community Bank, demonstrated unwavering commitment in effectively navigating the investment tax credits associated with the IRA," said Josh Rogol, President of Strata Clean Energy, "We are looking forward to more financing opportunities using similar strategies, particularly for the Scatter Wash battery storage complex, a 255MW/1GWh site we developed in Phoenix."
The Georgia and Springfield systems will help reduce costs and carbon emissions during peak energy demand periods. As part of its rapidly growing battery energy storage platform, Strata assumes ownership and long-term operational responsibilities for both projects.
"We are proud to partner with Strata Clean Energy and UCB to advance solutions that allow greater deployment of clean energy in our country. The financing for these two battery energy storage systems marks another milestone in our commitment to impactful investments," said Ed Rossier, Managing Director and Head of Climate Finance at Enhanced Capital. "This partnership enables the deployment of innovative energy storage solutions that benefit the grid, the environment, and the community."
With the addition of the Georgia and Springfield projects, Strata has developed over 3.1 GWh of battery energy storage assets across 13 projects and plans to own and operate facilities nationwide as part of its independent power producer strategy.
About Strata Clean Energy
Strata Clean Energy, LLC, and its affiliates (collectively "Strata") are a vertically integrated solar and storage development, engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) and operations & maintenance (O&M) company. Strata has deep utility experience with more than 170 projects in operation, over 8 gigawatts of PV solar and 31GWh of storage in development, and 4.2GW under management across the United States. Strata is focused on delivering best-in-class cost of ownership by imposing industry-leading quality assurance standards on our global manufacturers and suppliers, reducing risk, increasing efficiency, and maximizing cost competitiveness for our customers. Learn more about our company by visiting our website at http://www.stratacleanenergy.com.
About United Community Bank
United Community Banks, Inc. (NASDAQ: UCBI) is a top 100 U.S. financial institution with $25.9 billion in assets, and through its subsidiaries, provides a full range of banking, wealth management and mortgage services. UCBI is the financial holding company for United Community Bank ("United Community") which has 207 offices across Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, as well as a national SBA lending franchise and a national equipment lending subsidiary.
United Community is committed to improving the financial health and well-being of its customers and ultimately the communities it serves. Among other awards, United Community is a nine-time winner of the J.D. Power award that ranked the bank #1 in customer satisfaction with consumer banking in the Southeast and was recognized in 2023 by Forbes as one of the World’s Best Banks and one of America’s Best Banks. The bank is also a multi-award recipient of the Greenwich Excellence Awards, including the 2022 awards for Small Business Banking-Likelihood to Recommend (South) and Overall Satisfaction (South), and was named one of the "Best Banks to Work For" by American Banker in 2022 for the sixth consecutive year. Additional information about United can be found at www.ucbi.com.
About Enhanced Capital
Enhanced Capital Group, LLC is a leading impact investing firm with over 20 years of experience investing in Small Business Lending, Impact Real Estate, and Climate Finance.
From inception in 1999 through March 31, 2023, inclusive of proprietary assets and assets managed by affiliates, Enhanced Capital has raised a total of $5.6 billion. Of the total AUM, impact assets represent $3.5 billion invested in over 850 projects and businesses across 39 states, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico and does not include investments made by non-impact affiliates.
Enhanced Capital is committed to investing in four main impact themes: economic growth and job creation; underserved communities; underrepresented populations; and environmental sustainability. Enhanced Capital represents the impact solution of P10, Inc. (NYSE: PX), a diversified, multi-asset investment platform. For more information on Enhanced Capital, please visit www.enhancedcapital.com.
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Contacts
Wendy Prabhu
Email: strata@mercomcapital.com
Tel: 1.512.215.4452
