US Closes $861 Million Loan Guarantee for Solar, Energy Storage in Puerto Rico

The U.S. Energy Department announced on Tuesday that it had closed a $861 million loan to finance the construction in Puerto Rico of two photovoltaic solar farms and two batteries storage systems.

Why it's important

Puerto Rico, an American territory, was hit by hurricanes over the past few years. People in remote mountain communities were left without electricity for almost a year following Hurricane Maria in 2017. Studies estimate that between 3,000 and 4,600 deaths occurred after Maria knocked the power out.

Clean Flexible Energy LLC is the borrower, an indirect subsidiary AES and TotalEnergies Holdings USA. The Energy Department's Loan Programs Office closed the financing.

KEY QUOTE

"President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris understand that reliable energy is a life-or-death issue - particularly in light of the climate-change-fueled natural catastrophes that are intensifying and becoming more frequent," said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm.

By the Numbers

The Department of Energy and Natural Resources said that the Marahu project will annually produce enough electricity for about 43,000 homes and improve Puerto Rico's grid security and reliability. Marahu is 200 megawatts solar power, and 285 MW battery energy storage. The facilities will be in the municipalities Guayama y Salinas. Marahu is in support of the administration? Justice40 Initiative established the goal of 40% of all federal investment, including LPO funding, flowing to communities that are disadvantaged, which includes the majority of Puerto Rico's U.S. citizens. (Reporting and editing by Matthew Lewis in Washington)

(source: Reuters)