April.14.2022
Orrick represented Recurrent Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Solar, on the sale of the 105 MW solar plus 80 MWh storage Gaskell West 2 and 3 project in Kern County, California to Matrix Renewables, a renewable energy platform headquartered in Spain. Canadian Solar will remain involved via its majority-owned subsidiary, CSI Solar, which will oversee the supply, installation and commission of the 80 MWh lithium battery system and provide capacity and performance guarantees, ensuring system output, safety and dispatchability. The solar plus storage project marks the first transaction between Matrix Renewables and Recurrent Energy. The project is fully contracted under five long-term PPAs with cities and utilities in California and will generate enough clean energy to meet the electricity needs of 16,800 California homes, offsetting approximately 178,500 metric tons of carbon emissions each year.
Coupling energy storage with solar mitigates against the intermittency of renewables, allowing excess generated energy to be deployed during periods of high electricity demand and providing a clean and reliable source of energy – critical for meeting decarbonization goals. The project will deliver long-lasting benefits to the local community and will advance California’s emission reduction targets.
The team was led by Kristin Seeger and included Cory Lankford and Scott Cockerham.