The US Department of Energy (DOE) has closed loan financing for a 15MW solar-plus-storage project to be built in California, on lands owned by the Viejas Group of Capitan Grande Band Mission Indians.
Indian Energy, a developer owned entirely by Native Americans, will develop the project for the band, which describes itself as a “sovereign government recognised by the US government”. The project will consist of a 15MW solar project, with a co-located 70MWh battery energy storage system (BESS), backed by a US$72.8 million loan guarantee provided by the DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO).
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The money will be provided by a grant from the California Energy Commission and investments from US Bancorp Impact Finance and Starbucks and could total up to US$100 million.
“Amid surging energy demands, the Viejas Microgrid project is a win-win for the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians and California’s clean energy goals,” said California senator Alex Padilla. “California Tribes deserve energy independence and security as they adapt to the climate crisis, and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is making that priority a reality.”
While the DOE did not put a timeline on the project’s construction or commissioning, it noted that once the project is completed, members of the Viejas Band will purchase electricity generated at the project through a power purchase agreement (PPA) to “help operates various commercial businesses”. The investment is part of president Biden’s ‘Justice40’ initiative, which aims to deliver 40% of the “overall benefits” of federal investments, including those supported by the LPO, to “disadvantaged communities”, such as Native groups.
The DOE noted that across all of the LPO’s programmes, the department has received 211 applications for financing, totalling over US$295 billion.
The news follows advancements at other solar-plus-storage projects on Tribal land, including in the state of New Mexico. Such decentralised power generation and storage projects have emerged as an alternative means of supplying power as grid connectivity issues continue to plague the US, with figures from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) suggesting that there was around 2.6TW of power generating capacity waiting for grid connections at the end of 2023.
