Aypa Power, a Blackstone portfolio company has closed a $190 million financing package for the Bypass battery energy storage system project to be located in Fort Bend County, Texas. The 200 MW/400 MWh project will help address the region’s growing capacity needs and reinforce Texas’ reputation as the USA’s ‘most dynamic market for grid storage’.
The financing package includes a $68 m construction-to-term loan, a $91 million tax equity bridge loan (TEBL), and $31 m in letters of credit. The financing was provided by SMBC and Santander with Siemens Financial Services as joint lead arranger. The financing structure is supported by a long-term offtake arrangement, providing the project with an attractive revenue profile.
Bill Nguyen, executive VP, Finance, at Aypa Power, commented: “As one of the first fully contracted energy storage projects in ERCOT [Electric Reliability Council of Texas], Bypass BESS demonstrates how innovative financing structures and strong partnerships can deliver critical infrastructure to meet the region’s growing power needs.”
