A number of project stories from the US this week, as Vesper Energy sets a date to commission its Hornet Solar project in Texas, Lightsource bp commissions a 180MW project in Louisana and Innergex Renewable Energy begins work at a solar-plus-storage project in Hawaii.
Vesper Energy to launch Hornet Solar operations in April
Texas-based developer Vesper Energy will commission its 600MW Hornet Solar project on 10 April and plans to hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the achievement. The project consists of over 1.36 million modules, making it one of the largest single-phase solar installations in the US. The developer completed construction in January of this year after raising close to US$600 million in finance for the project last year.
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Vesper will sell electricity produced at the project through four offtakers via power purchase agreements (PPAs). The commissioning date is in line with the company’s initial timeline, which set the date of commercial operations to begin at some point in spring 2025.
Last year, the company said that production tax credits (PTCs), made transferrable under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) were an important part of the project’s construction, with more than US$500 million in PTC mobilised by the project’s financing structure.
Last year, Vesper’s senior director of project execution, Zach Wald, wrote a piece for PV Tech Premium in which he described the transferrable PTCs as “critical catalysts” for the delivery of large-scale solar projects.
Lightsource bp commissions 180MW Louisana solar project
Developer Lightsource bp has commissioned its 180MW Prairie Ronde solar project in Louisiana. The project will use a range of products from US manufacturers, including panels from First Solar and trackers from Array Technologies, as part of a US$170 million investment.
The company has also established the St. Landry Parish Community Fund, named after the parish in which the project has been built, to ensure that the project “collaborates closely with local residents”, including providing funding for local schools.
While Louisiana has not been a historically dominant force in the US solar sector—figures from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) rank Louisiana 31st in total operational capacity as of the end of 2024—the state added a record 900MW of new solar capacity in 2024, around triple the installations of the previous year.
“The Prairie Ronde solar project is a powerful example of domestic energy investment in action,” said Emilie Wangerman, chief operations officer of Lightsource bp USA. “Working together with our partners, we are building a more resilient grid with US-made products, supporting underserved communities, creating jobs, introducing homegrown energy solutions and reducing our nation’s dependence on foreign imports.”
Lightsource bp signed a PPA with fast food giant McDonald’s to sell power produced at the project in 2023 and secured US$140 million in tax equity through a deal with bank Barclays in 2024 to support the project’s deployment.
Innergex begins work at Hawaii solar-plus-storage project
Independent power producer (IPP) Innergex Renewable Energy’s 30MW/120MWh Hale Kuawehi battery energy storage system (BESS) project has reached commercial operations. The project, located on Hawaii island, combines 30MW of solar PV with the 4-hour BESS (battery energy storage system).
Energy-Storage.news previously reported Innergex’s closing of a US$100 million bridge loan for the Hale Kuawehi BESS in December 2024. The IPP secured the loan with First Citizens Bank to support the BESS project through what the company said would be its final stages.
Electricity produced by the Hale Kuawehi project will be sold under a 25-year PPA with Hawaii Electric Light Company (HECO).
Hale Kuawehi is HECO’s first project in service since June 2024, when the 42MW/168MWh Kupono solar-plus-storage project came online. Multiple projects have been approved by regulators, one of which is Hoohana Solar 1, a 52MW/208MWh project from Hanwha’s 174 Power Global.
Read the full version of this story on Energy-Storage.news.
PV Tech publisher Solar Media will be organising the fourth edition of Large Scale Solar USA in Dallas, Texas 29-30 April. After a record year for solar PV additions in the US, the event will dive into the ongoing uncertainties on tariffs, tax credits and trade policies as more domestic manufacturing becomes operational. Other challenges, such as the interconnection queues and permitting, will also be covered in Dallas. More information, including how to attend, can be read here.
