Analysis
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Fundraising for infrastructure funds globally was challenging in H1 2024, with data from sister publication IJInvestor revealing that $57.85 billion was raised by 40 funds that hit final close. North America-focused funds too have not been popular among investors over the last 2 half years, representing just 11% of capital raised.
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Spanish renewables developer Grenergy reached financial close in July 2024 for the first 2 phases of its Oasis de Atacama solar-plus-storage project in Chile, the largest storage project in the world according to the company.
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Tax credit transferability has dramatically altered the tax equity market since it was introduced in 2023 under the Inflation Reduction Act. From bringing in more would-be investors and facilitating the creation of online platforms to sell credits, transferability immediately expanded the traditional $20 billion (or so) tax equity market. In 2023 it added around $9 billion of new deals and is expected to double the market by the end of 2024.
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The energy transition in the US has been turbo-charged in recent years by sweeping federal government tax reform and state-level emissions targets. Despite the gigawatts of renewables being built across the nation, getting power connected to load markets remains a problem – transmission infrastructure is the hold up.
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Mexico’s renewables market had been described by some industry professionals as at “rock bottom” but with a change at the political top the market is bracing for a rebound.
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For more than 7 months the government of Alberta paused the approval of new renewable energy projects causing a multi-gigawatt logjam with upwards of $25 billion of investment sat idle.
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The tax equity market was changed forever with the introduction of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). As the last of the guidelines for these renewables tax breaks – specifically transferability rules – are ironed out the market has already found innovative ways to take advantage of the new regime.
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A stalled bill to extend tax breaks for data centres in Michigan has been touted as the bellwether for a co-generation comeback.
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As the Lone Star State begins to face the climbing summer temperatures, intense weather events, specifically Winter Storm Uri, remain at the top of Texans' minds.
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Clean hydrogen projects across the US are generating enormous interest but many struggle to reach bankability as many risks, such as technology, supply chain, regulation and offtake, are halting progress.
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The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) in April cancelled contracts for 4GW of offshore wind projects after GE Vernova "caused material changes" by scrapping its turbine design for the projects.
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Brazil is already the leader in the energy transition. The country’s power matrix stands out in its composition with close to 90% coming from renewable sources including hydroelectricity. Yet, growth opportunities remain vast in the renewable sector and beyond. According to the Brazilian Association of Infrastructure and Base Industries (ABDIB), Brazil is looking to bridge a $50 billion a year gap in infrastructure investments.
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Patent infringement lawsuits are becoming commonplace in the renewable energy sector as manufacturers look to take advantage of the US’ lucrative tax credit regime.
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Renewables developers are readying themselves for more supply chain disruption as additional tariffs on China-made panels are under consideration from the US government.
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The US offshore wind sector continues to gain momentum with the latest round of regulatory approvals as financiers begin to prep the paperwork to fund these mega projects.
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Green hydrogen promises to be a game changer in global energy transition with the possibility it presents in decarbonising industries. Latin America has positioned itself as a frontrunner in the emerging space with mega projects being lined up by developers across the continent.
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Renewable M&A activity in Latin America has slowed down in the last year, a phenomenon not endemic to the region with lower anticipated returns, high interest rates, and other factors including low energy prices hindering the space across jurisdictions.
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Financing greenfield projects across Latin America had been tough over the past few years as inflation and high interest rates continued challenge the region’s renewable energy sector.
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The largest clean energy infrastructure project in US history was closed just before we started the new year. Pattern Energy inked $11 billion in financing for its 500+ mile transmission line connecting more than 3.5GW of stranded wind resources – SunZia.
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When the tax equity market was transformed in 2023 with transferability, it was not only the tax equity market and energy players that were excited about the new credit capabilities. The guidelines released in June 2023 opened the market to any other investors with tax appetites, and tax transfer platforms hope to streamline the process for new investors.
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Against challenging clean energy targets the US offshore wind energy continues to forge ahead. Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, the Department of the Interior has approved the nation's first 6 commercial-scale offshore wind energy projects.
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Barely a month into the new year and infrastructure and energy investment managers have dominated headlines. Global Infrastructure Partners – and all $100 billion of its AUM – got absorbed into fund management behemoth BlackRock. Meanwhile, General Atlantic bolted on $12.5 billion sustainable infrastructure firm Actis onto its beefy $86 billion body of managed assets.
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Towards the end of 2023 SoftBank and Ares Management-backed SB Energy Global stole a march on renewable developers across the US when it secured $2.4 billion in financing for solar projects that became the first to qualify for the federal domestic content tax credit bonus.
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Large nuclear plants may overtake previously trending small modular reactors (SMRs) in the market as both private and federal funds are zeroing in on the sector to meet ever-growing grid demand.
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The renewable energy sector in Chile continued to feel market disruptions in 2023 forcing many financial reorganizations and restructurings throughout the year.
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Although an issue facing the whole energy sector, transmission and grid connectivity for the offshore wind industry has reached a whole new level of complexity.
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Texas lawmakers via a two-thirds margin voted in a controversial constitutional amendment that authorizes a $10 billion Texas Energy Fund aimed at providing low-interest loans to build gas-fired power plants, develop microgrids and modernize portions of the state’s electric grid.
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Among the many hurdles the offshore wind sector is facing, the lack of guidelines for tax credits guidelines remains one of the most convoluted.
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The seas have been rough for the offshore wind sector, and projects are repeatedly being hit by rising interest rates, supply chain disruptions, local unrest, and political opposition. Financing issues and heavy losses in the past quarter have unraveled the traditional project process. The key economic burden on these projects is, by far, the power purchase agreement (PPA) gap.
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Green hydrogen development took a giant stride towards bankability as the Department of Energy selected 7 green hydrogen hub winners across 16 states, handing out $7 billion from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
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Battery energy storage systems (BESS) M&A activity in the US continues to steadily increase as nationwide transmission upgrades and interconnectivity queues grow – with deals for the relatively new technology now in the billions of dollars.
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Google is standardizing the power purchase agreement (PPA) contracts it uses for renewables projects following a year-long trial with technology firm LevelTen.
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The exhaustive push to deploy the 468MW Cape Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts came to a halt in early January 2015. Power purchase agreements (PPAs) fell through; banks fell away (PFR, 1/7/15). The $1.95 billion deal, the first offshore wind farm to be fully permitted by the BOEM, died after 14 years.
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The Department of Commerce made a final decision in its long-running investigation into whether Southeast Asian solar manufacturers are using parts made in China that should be subject to a tariff, potentially harming solar projects that rely on these overseas imports.
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The future will see carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) become a primary part of the green energy sector, but as of now public capital is needed to successfully navigate the risks associated with nascent technologies.
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The broad benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) has meant tax equity has never played a more crucial role in driving investment in renewable energy projects in the US. Yet, while many project finance practitioners have been busy readying themselves to take advantage of this new and improved tax equity regime, the devil – as always – remains in the details. To shine some much-needed light on the evolving space PFR has brought together a panel of experts on tax equity to review the latest developments and innovations in this fascinating area of renewable energy finance, as well as the outlook for the coming years.
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The Inflation Reduction Act was finally signed into law after more than a year of negotiations last August. West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin (D), the deciding vote, lengthened discussions by insisting on capital being made available for retrofitting coal and oil plants, creating carbon capture projects, and adding emission control technologies.
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Amid anticipation that green hydrogen would play a significant role in energy transition the Chilean government introduced the Fund for the Development of Green Hydrogen and its derivatives, an inter-ministerial operation that garnered the financial support of development banks in Europe and the US.
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Brookfield Renewable’s acquisition of Duke Energy’s renewables business comes amid a slowdown of mega M&A deals for renewables platforms as financing costs continue to run up fast.
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While many column inches have been filled extolling the broad benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA), the power sector has been impatiently waiting for guidance from the US Treasury for greater clarity on some tax equity fine print — most notably, the concept of transferability.
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