Canadian Solar recently announced that Recurrent Energy, its wholly owned subsidiary for global project development and power services, secured $112 million in project financing for its 160 MW (120 MWac) North Fork Solar project, located 100 miles southwest of Oklahoma City. The project is expected to be operational in 2024.
Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) – which serves 42 municipally-owned electric systems in Oklahoma – will purchase 100% of the energy produced by North Fork Solar under a 15-year agreement. And OMPA’s power purchase agreement with Recurrent Energy marks the municipal utility’s first solar energy transaction. OMPA’s power supply comes from various resources, including 151 MW of Oklahoma wind.
North Fork Solar represents Recurrent Energy’s first project in Oklahoma and first project in the Southwest Power Pool (SPP), which is the bulk electric grid and wholesale power market operator across 15 states in the central U.S. And solar energy currently makes up less than 1% of the energy resource mix in SPP.
Recurrent Energy had selected Blattner Energy as the engineering, procurement, and construction partner for North Fork Solar. And once operational, the project will produce enough electricity to power 35,000 homes.
Recurrent Energy started the development of North Fork Solar in 2018. Once construction is completed, And Recurrent Energy will own and operate the project through its Power Services business as a part of its commitment to growing the number of renewable energy projects in its operating assets portfolio.
KEY QUOTES:
“OMPA is extremely excited to add North Fork Solar to our portfolio of energy resources. This will continue to diversify our energy mix and increase the amount of non-carbon resources for the benefit of our member cities.”
— David Osburn, OMPA General Manager
“We are pleased to support Recurrent Energy on another project financing as Coordinating Lead Arranger. Our team values the long-standing relationship with the Recurrent Energy team as we collectively continue to adapt and innovate around an evolving market. North Fork Solar takes no exception and further diversifies our portfolio within the SPP market. We look forward to continuing our long-standing partnership with Recurrent Energy especially as they execute on their ambitious energy transition pipeline.”
— Sondra Martinez, Managing Director, Nord/LB
“As Recurrent Energy ramps up investment in its diverse project pipeline and increases its project ownership, we’re delighted today to announce the close of project financing for North Fork Solar in Oklahoma with our trusted partners – NordLB and Rabobank. Oklahoma has long been known for its rich wind resource, and now OMPA’s customers will benefit from low-cost solar energy to complement the wind energy in their portfolio.”
— Ismael Guerrero, CEO of Recurrent Energy
