Lightsource bp has successfully closed on a $533 million multiproject financing package on Jan. 12 and will soon mobilize construction on its 135 megawatt (MW) Conway Solar project located near Happy, Arkansas, approximately 55 miles northeast of Little Rock.
Lightsource bp will build, own and operate the facility and deliver the clean, renewable energy it generates to Conway Corp. under a long-term power purchase agreement for their customers in the City of Conway. The solar farm will generate enough electricity to power more than 21,400 homes, and will also play a role in reducing the city’s carbon footprint by the equivalent of CO2 emissions from 35,400 fuel burning cars annually.
Conway Solar is part of a 480 MW, $533 million portfolio financing package for multiple solar projects. Debt for the portfolio was provided through partnerships made with HSBC Bank USA, National Association, financial services firm ING Capital LLC, Europe-based banking group Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A., New York Branch, project financing lender NatWest, Societe Generale, and international banking group Standard Chartered Bank. The balance of equity requirements were invested and supported by Lightsource bp.
In the last two years, the Lightsource bp team has raised over $2.3 billion in financing for its projects in ten states across the U.S.
“Beyond improving the health and energy security of communities across America, large-scale solar projects help strengthen local economies,” Kevin Smith, CEO of the Americas—Lightsource bp, said. “As the owner and operator of the Conway solar farm at Happy, we look forward to bringing economic benefits to the region, along with fostering long-term community partnerships.”
Construction of the Conway Solar farm at Happy will create approximately 200 construction jobs, to be filled mainly by local workers, and abate about 162,800 metric tons of CO2 emissions annually for the city of Conway, equivalent to annual emissions from about 35,400 fuel burning cars.
Construction will start in March 2022, with full commercial operation expected in mid-2023. Gibson Technical Services (GTS), a subsidiary of Orbital Energy Group, has been selected by Lightsource bp as the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor for the photovoltaic (PV) solar plant.
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