sPower, the largest private owner of utility-scale solar operating assets in the United States, announced completion of a tax equity investment and construction/term loan totaling $434 million that will finance a group of three solar projects, totaling 183MWdc, in California. Black & Veatch Management Consulting, LLC, provided Independent Engineering and Due Diligence services for sPower’s lenders and tax equity investors.
“The team successfully came together to find creative finance and structuring solutions," said Ray Henger, sPower SVP, M&A and Structured Finance, in a company news release. "While coordination across this many banks was a challenge, we appreciate how hard our partners worked to close the transaction.
Key services provided by Black & Veatch included:
- Site assessments to determine if each could accommodate the project.
- A review of major equipment technology and the qualifications/experience of major equipment suppliers.
- A review of key system designs to verify the adequacy of the design against expected plant performance and reliability.
- A review of the key contracts (EPC, Interconnection Agreement, Power Purchase Agreement and an Operations and Maintenance agreement) and financial model.
- A resource and production assessment.
- Construction monitoring.
“Independent Engineer and Due Diligence services help investors and lenders understand project risks and make informed decisions about a project or technology,” said Matt Channon, Project Manager for the sPower program. “We help them to protect their investments that supports new project development.”
As the project progresses, Black & Veath will also support assessments of various engineering, procurement and construction elements, such as construction plan and construction schedule reviews, among other items. Once the facility is built, the company will provide substantial completion phase services, which will include a review of the as-built system documentation and interconnection approval.
