S&P Global Offerings
Featured Topics
Featured Products
Events
S&P Global Offerings
Featured Topics
Featured Products
Events
S&P Global Offerings
Featured Topics
Featured Products
Events
Solutions
Capabilities
Delivery Platforms
News & Research
Our Methodology
Methodology & Participation
Reference Tools
Featured Events
S&P Global
S&P Global Offerings
S&P Global
Research & Insights
Solutions
Capabilities
Delivery Platforms
News & Research
Our Methodology
Methodology & Participation
Reference Tools
Featured Events
S&P Global
S&P Global Offerings
S&P Global
Research & Insights
S&P Global Offerings
Featured Topics
Featured Products
Events
Support
08 Jul 2020 | 21:52 UTC — Houston
Highlights
Aim to build 24 solar facilities starting in 2023
Capital Dynamics seeks geographic diversity
Asset management firm Capital Dynamics and independent power producer Tenaska said Wednesday they are forming a "new strategic relationship" to build 24 solar facilities with 4.8 GW of capacity in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator and SERC Reliability Corporation footprints.
"We expect to build the projects in MISO and SERC in 2023," Beloit Allehaut, managing director of Capital Dynamics' Clean Energy Infrastructure business told Platts in an email on Wednesday.
The companies said in joint statement that the portfolio represents "a large share of solar projects currently in the MISO and SERC interconnection pipelines" and will help Capital Dynamics to diversify what it called its "growing utility-scale solar power portfolio" across seven new states.
The announcement said that Tenaska – through its solar development services group Tenaska Solar Ventures – will work with Capital Dynamics to commercialize the solar projects.
The "new" relationship announced Wednesday is similar to a November 2018 announcement of an agreement between Capital Dynamics and Tenaska to develop 2,000 MW in the MISO market, with a particular focus on Michigan, Missouri, Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana and Minnesota.
"The SERC/MISO portfolio announcement today is additive to the MISO portfolio announcement in November 2018," said Tenaska spokesperson Timberly Ross.
According to Allehaut, "We have several partnerships with Tenaska. This new partnership is distinct and offers a different geographical footprint in MISO and an expansion into SERC."
Allehaut claimed that Capital Dynamics is "the second largest owner of solar in the US," and that it "pragmatically acquires high-quality long-term power purchase agreements. "
According to a July 6, MISO Generation Interconnection Queue status report, 1,388 MW of solar generation capacity is due to come online by the end of 2020, with 669 MW slated to be operational by September 1.
Tenaska said that it and its affiliates manage operations for 8,200 MW of power generation, consisting of 12 power plants owned by Tenaska in partnership with other companies and directly operating 7,700 MW.
Tenaska brought online several years ago two solar facilities located in the Imperial Valley in California near the border with Mexico that had 354 MW of combined capacity, and in July 2018, Capital Dynamic's Clean Energy Infrastructure team took equity stakes in the C-Solar projects.
On Wednesday, Capital Dynamics said it owns 28% of the combined C-Solar projects, while Tenaska owns 71.2%.
Since the equity acquisition, Capital Dynamics has been on an asset-buying spree and now owns 1,272 MW of solar capacity.
In January, the New York-based investment group whose parent company is headquartered in Switzerland, purchased the 400-MW Eland project to be located in in Kern County, California, from 8minute Solar Energy for an undisclosed sum.
That project, located outside Los Angeles, is being built with a 300-megawatt/1,200-megawatt-hour energy storage facility, and is expected to come online in 2023.
Also in January, Capital Dynamics and 8minute Solar Energy joined forces and bought the 387-MW Eagle Shadow Mountain Project slated for Nevada.
"While we continue to grow our portfolio in California and Nevada, both states where we already have a large portfolio, we continue to grow a national presence. We are completing the construction of projects in Oregon, we recently closed the acquisition of the Coronal portfolio which added operating assets in Florida, Tennessee, Arizona and California," Allehaut said Wednesday.
According to quarterly data filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and compiled by S&P Global Platts, Tenaska was ranked 24th among more than 550 wholesale power sellers in the first quarter of 2020.
The Omaha, Nebraska-based company had 11.48 million MWh of wholesale power sales, with 2.39 million MWh sold in the PJM Penelec, or Pennsylvania Electric Zone, 1.77 million MWh sold in the PJM Meted, or Metropolitan Edison Zone, and 1.05 million MWh sold in the Southern Company balancing area.
However, Tenaska's wholesale solar power sales in Q1 totaled just 116,164 MWh, giving it a ranking of 21st out of 80 companies who reported their solar sales to FERC.
Tenaska, which announced on May 18 that its 242-MW Clear Creek wind facility in Missouri had become fully operational, had 141,885 MWh of wholesale wind sales in Q1 2020, giving it a ranking of 70th out of the 105 companies who reported wind sales to FERC.
Capital Dynamics, on the other hand, was ranked fifth in terms of wholesale solar power sold in Q1 2020, with just under 600,000 MWh sold. The bulk of its sales were in the California Independent System Operator market.
Among wholesale wind power sellers, Capital Dynamics was ranked 35th, with 414,000 MWh sold.
Gain access to exclusive research, events and more