Solar project developer Lightsource bp has sold two US PV projects to Japanese-owned renewable energy asset owner JERA Nex.
The 300MW Oxbow solar farm in Louisiana and the 95MW Happy solar farm in Arkansas changed hands for an undisclosed sum. Both projects are already in commercial operation and contracted under power purchase agreements (PPA) with corporate giants McDonald’s and eBay and the Conway, Arkansas power utility Conway Corp, respectively.
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Under the agreement, Lightsource bp will continue to provide asset management and operations & maintenance (O&M) services to the sites.
This is JERA Nex’s first foray into the US solar market and was executed in partnership with JERA Americas. Both companies are subsidiaries of Japanese power generation company JERA, which was created through a consolidation of different departments of two Japanese utilities, the Tokyo Electric Power Company and the Chubu Electric Power Company.
JERA invests in fossil fuels, energy storage, and renewable energy generation technologies. JERA Nex is the company’s renewable energy arm.
In December 2023, British oil giant bp took full ownership of Lightsource bp by acquiring the outstanding 50.03% stake it did not already own.
John O’Brien, COO of JERA Americas said: “The team at JERA Americas began working with Lightsource bp last year to help drive JERA’s net zero ambition, and we are delighted to have brought this transaction to a successful conclusion. We will continue to work with JERA Nex and other partners to seek new renewable energy opportunities.”
Lightsource bp closed financing in March for another 180MW PV project in Louisiana. The Prairie Ronde project benefited from a US$140 million tax equity deal with British bank Barclays; it is expected online by the end of 2024. As with the Oxbow project bought by JERA Nex, Prairie Ronde is contracted under a PPA with McDonald’s, signed in February 2023.
The developer is also building two utility-scale PV projects in Texas – the 168MW Starr solar project and the 125MW Second Division project. In February, Lightsource bp closed a US$348 million financing package to support the construction of these projects, which included the tax credit transferability facility under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
A report from US sustainable finance company Crux last week showed that the IRA transferability market had reached a total of US$11 billion in the first half of 2024.
