Clēnera raises US$304 million for 120MW solar-plus-storage project in Idaho

March 16, 2026
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Clēnera's Atrisco solar-plus-storage project in New Mexico.
Enlight and Clēnera have raised over US$1 billion for new solar-plus-storage projects in the US in the last year. Image: Clēnera.

Clēnera, the US subsidiary of independent power producer (IPP) Enlight Renewable Energy, has secured US$304 million in finance to advance the development of the 120MW Crimson Orchard solar-plus-storage project in the US state of Idaho.

The project, currently under construction in Elmore County, will pair 120MW of solar PV capacity with 400MWh of battery energy storage systems (BESS).

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

Clēnera expects to begin commercial operation at the project in the first half of 2027, and has already signed a busbar power purchase agreement (PPA) for the project’s solar output, and a toiling agreement for the project’s BESS component, with local utility Idaho Power. Both offtake agreements will run for 20 years.

“Crimson Orchard marks our second financing with Clēnera, and we’re thrilled to continue supporting their momentum in the US renewables market,” said Ari Citrin, managing director at KeyBanc Capital Markets, one of the financiers of the project. Other investors include HSBC, ING Capital and MUFG Bank, which provided construction financing and term debt for the project.

Clēnera has now invested up to US$342 million into the Crimson Orchard project, and is part of the 13GW of clean energy capacity for which the company has secured safe harbour status in the US.

The news follows the raising of finance for another US solar-plus-storage project, the County Acres facility in California, which Enlight completed last year. The company has also been active in Europe, raising money for a hybrid wind-solar-storage project in Spain.

After five editions of Large Scale Solar USA, the event becomes SolarPLUS USA to mirror where the market is heading. The 2026 edition, held in Dallas, Texas, on 24-25 March, will bring together developers, investors and utilities to discuss managing hybrid assets, multi-state pipelines, power demand increase from data centres and AI as well as the co-location of solar PV with energy storage in a complex grid. For more details and how to attend the event, visit the website here.

16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2028 and beyond.
13 October 2026
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
PV Tech has been running an annual PV CellTech Conference since 2016. PV CellTech USA, on 13-14 October 2026 is our third PV CellTech conference dedicated to the U.S. manufacturing sector. The events in 2023, 2024 and 2025 were a sell out success and 2026 will once again gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing in the U.S. out to 2030 and beyond.

Read Next

Premium
April 24, 2026
US solar permitting delays are raising costs and slowing deployment, with PV Tech speaking to Crux experts on implications for developers and the wider PV industry.
April 24, 2026
The US DoC has issued preliminary affirmative determinations in antidumping duty investigations, setting preliminary dumping margins of 123.04% for India, 35.15% for Indonesia and 22.46% for Laos.
April 24, 2026
The European Commission has reportedly banned EU funds from supporting energy projects using Chinese-made inverters.
April 23, 2026
UAE state-owned renewables developer Masdar has established a joint venture (JV) with the national power utility of Montenegro to develop “large-scale” clean energy projects in the country.
April 23, 2026
Renalfa IPP has secured funding from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) for its Szihalom 450MW solar-plus-storage project in Hungary.
April 23, 2026
The Global Solar Council has announced a new management and strategy board drawn from across the solar and storage industries.

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Webinars
May 27, 2026
9am BST / 10am CEST
Media Partners, Solar Media Events
June 3, 2026
National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai)
Solar Media Events
June 16, 2026
Napa, USA
Solar Media Events
October 13, 2026
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
Solar Media Events
November 3, 2026
Málaga, Spain