DOE Approves Loan Guarantee for ON Line
On October 20, my colleague Janet Jacobs reported that the U.S. Department of Energy ("DOE") had offered a conditional commitment of $350 million to NV Energy, Inc. and Great Basin Transmission South, LLC, an affiliate of LS Power Group, for development of the 500-kV One Nevada Transmission Line (the "ON Line project").
Well, good news.
Two days ago, Secretary Chu announced that DOE had approved a $343 million loan guarantee for the ON Line project- the first of its kind for a transmission line. The ON Line project will stretch 235 miles from Ely, Nevada to a substation just north of Las Vegas at a projected cost of $500 million. As the first phase of a larger transmission infrastructure project, the ON Line will initially be able to transmit approximately 600 MW of otherwise landlocked renewable energy to load centers. When the final phase of the project is completed, the line will be able to transmit approximately 2 GW (or 2,000 MW) of renewable electricity from Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada to serve customers in southern Nevada, California, and the rest of the Southwest.
DOE Offers First Loan Guarantee for Transmission Project
DOE announced on October 19 its offer of a conditional commitment for a $350 million loan guarantee to develop the One Nevada Transmission Line (ON Line). ON Line consists of a new 500-kilovolt transmission line that will run 235 miles from Ely, Nevada to just north of Las Vegas. The project will carry approximately 600 megawatts (MW) of electricity, including renewable energy resources in northern Nevada. It will also integrate existing transmission systems in northern and southern Nevada, improving grid reliability and efficiency, and reducing power costs. This is the first transmission line project to be offered such a commitment by DOE's Loan Programs Office.
The ON Line project will be the first phase of the Southwest Intertie Project which, when fully completed, will carry approximately 2,000 MW of electricity and will enable wind and solar resources in Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada to power the Southwest and California markets. The ON Line project is expected to contract about 85% of its parts and labor from U.S.-based companies, and it will create approximately 400 construction jobs.
Geothermal Projects Recent Beneficiaries of DOE's Loan Guarantee Programs
U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu recently announced conditional commitments to provide loan guarantees in connection with two geothermal projects located in Oregon and Nevada. Specifically, on June 10, 2010, Secretary Chu announced that the Department of Energy offered a $102 million conditional commitment for a loan guarantee to U.S. Geothermal, Inc. to construct a 22 megawatt geothermal power project in Malheur County in southeastern Oregon. The project is slated to use an improved technology to extract energy from rock and fluids in the earth's crust more efficiently. In addition, U.S. Geothermal estimated that the planned project will create 150 jobs during the 20-month construction period and employ 10 skilled full-time workers when it begins operating in 2012.
On June 15, 2010, Secretary Chu announced that the Department of Energy offered a conditional commitment to provide a partial guarantee for a $98.5 million loan by John Hancock Financial Services to the Nevada Geothermal Power Company ("NGP") for a 49.5 megawatt geothermal project in Humboldt County in northwestern Nevada (the "Blue Mountain Project"). This conditional commitment is the first access to a loan guarantee through the Financial Institution Partnership Program ("FIPP"), which was launched by the Department of Energy on October 7, 2009. Under a FIPP financing, the Department of Energy provides a guarantee for up to 80 percent of a loan provided by qualified financial institutions to a renewable energy project utilizing commercial technologies. In connection with the loan guarantee for the Blue Mountain Project, John Hancock Financial Services was the lender-applicant and lead lender. The Blue Mountain Project "consists of a geothermal well field, fluid collection and injection systems that enable energy to be extracted from rock and fluid below the Earth's surface, and a power plant that converts geothermal energy into electricity." The electricity generated by the project will be sold to Nevada Power Company under a 20-year power purchase agreement.
U.S. Department of Energy Announces Final Rule Amending Regulations for Loan Guarantee Program
On December 7, 2009, Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced the issuance of a final rule amending the October, 2007 Final Regulations implementing the Loan Guarantee Program under Section 1703 of Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (the "Section 1703 Program"). The amendments implemented through the final rule were first identified in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Opportunity for Comment issued by the Department of Energy ("DOE") on August 7, 2009. The comment period for the proposed amendments ended on September 22, 2009; the comments received by the DOE from the industry and other interested parties were largely supportive of the proposed amendments.
In a nutshell, the amendments to the regulations outlined in the final rule are designed to:
- provide flexibility in the determination of an appropriate collateral package to secure the guaranteed loan obligations;
- eliminate the requirement that the Secretary receive a first priority lien on all project assets as a condition for obtaining the loan guarantee;
- facilitate collateral sharing and related intercreditor arrangements with other project lenders; and
- provide a more workable interpretation of certain statutory provisions regarding DOE's treatment of collateral that is more consistent with the intent and purposes of Title XVII.
By way of background, the impetus for the amendments to the regulations arose from what could be characterized as a "stalled" effort to actually provide the loan guarantees contemplated under the Section 1703 Program. This stalled effort was due to the fact that, among other things, the regulations did not provide enough flexibility to allow for a wide variety of ownership and financing structures needed for the types of projects that could have benefitted from the Section 1703 Program. The Section 1703 Program is focused on (1) encouraging commercial use in the U.S. of new or significantly improved energy-related technologies, and (2) achieving substantial environmental benefits. Through this program, the DOE believes that the commercial use of these technologies will help sustain and promote economic growth, produce a more stable and secure energy supply and economy for the U.S. and improve the environment.
Upcoming Webinar: Stimulus Bill Part 3 - The DOE Loan Guarantee Program for Clean Energy Projects
We invite you to join us for the third installment of our complimentary Stimulus Bill Webinar series. This session will focus on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Loan Guarantee Program, which received nearly $6 billion in Stimulus Bill funding. The DOE recently redesigned the program in an effort to bring private capital back to large-scale renewable energy project development. Since the release of the Financial Institution Partnership Program (FIPP) solicitation, there have been some promising initial signs with several prominent U.S. and European-based banks actively supporting projects.
Our panel of experts includes a current DOE program official with knowledge of the program's intricacies, an investment banker who was a former director of the program and a Stoel Rives attorney who is assisting clients through the application process. The webinar will discuss the innovative and commercial programs, FIPP, the evolving rules for the program, the application process and the type of projects the program was developed to support.
Speakers:
Richard Corrigan, Senior Advisor, Department of Energy's Loan Guarantee Program
Walter S. Howes, Former Director of DOE's Loan Guarantee Program, current Managing Partner, Verdigris Capital LLC
Graham Noyes, Former VP of Sales and Business Development, Imperium Renewables LLC; current Attorney, Stoel Rives LLP
When:
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
10 a.m. Pacific; 11 a.m. Mountain; noon Central; 1 p.m. Eastern
Cost:
Complimentary
Register:
Register online at http://www.stoel.com/webcasts
$13 Million Awarded from the Rural Energy for America Program
In an earlier blog, my colleagues, Debra Frimerman and Janet Jacobs reported about the Rural Energy for America Program (“REAP”), in general and specifically in regards to small wind projects. REAP is a Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) program that provides grants and loan guarantees to agricultural producers and rural small businesses to purchase renewable energy systems, make energy efficiency improvements and conduct feasibility studies for renewable energy systems. Eligible renewable energy systems include those that generate heat, electricity or fuels from wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, hydro power, and hydrogen based feed stocks.
The USDA has announced that it has awarded more than $13 million in REAP funds for 233 renewable energy projects in 38 states. Examples of the awards include a $1.8 million guaranteed loan and $500,000 grant for Milford Wind Energy, LLC; a $435,271 guaranteed loan and $435,271 grant for Unaka Forest Products, Inc.; and a $15,000 grant to Pacifica Marine, Inc.
For information on this and other USDA programs to finance renewable energy development, please refer to our earlier client alert regarding the Food Conservation and Energy Act (also known as the “2008 Farm Bill”) or visit the USDA’s 2008 Farm Bill website.
Free Webinar on Loan Guarantee Program Hosted by DOE
The U.S. Department of Energy is hosting a free webinar on "How to Build a Strong Application" for the DOE Loan Guarantee Program on Tuesday, September 8, 2009 from 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EST. The webinar is intended to explain the loan guarantee program and help lenders and applicants navigate the application process. DOE will also be providing suggestions on how to create a strong loan guarantee application.
DOE recently released two solicitations under the program for innovative energy efficiency, renewable energy and advanced transmission and distribution technologies and transmission infrastructure investment projects. DOE is particularly interested in wind, closed-loop biomass, open-loop biomass, geothermal, landfill gas, trash-to-energy, hydropower and solar projects that are able to commence construction before September 30, 2011.
DOE will be hosting a series of free webinars on the application process over the next few months.
Show me the Money: DOE Proposes Amendments to its Loan Guarantee Program
Today, the Department of Energy (DOE) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to amend 10 CFR Part 609, the rule regulating the loan guarantee program authorized by section 1703 of Title XVII of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The two principal goals of section 1703 of Title XVII are to encourage commercial use of new or significantly improved energy-related technologies and to achieve substantial environmental benefits. (See these recent alerts regarding the DOE loan guarantee program and the related application process)
After reexamining Title XVII, the DOE has concluded that the statute does not require a first lien on all project assets. DOE has discovered that its current requirement that it be in lien position is in conflict with the financing structure of many energy projects. For example, many utility scale power plants are jointly owned by public power agencies, cooperative power systems and investor-owned utilities. In these cases, it may not be commercially feasible to obtain a lien on all project assets or the credit of a sponsor may be sufficient to support a more modest pledge of assets.
Furthermore, DOE has found that other parties are interested in participating as co-lenders, co-guarantors, or insurers of Title XVII loans. However, these other parties expect to share, on a pari passu basis, in any collateral securing such loans.
Consequently, DOE proposes two amendments to the current rules:
- Delete the requirement of a first priority lien on all project assets and leave to the Secretary (of DOE) the determination of an appropriate collateral package, as well as intercreditor arrangements; and
- Allow the Secretary (of DOE) to determine if pari passu lending is in the best interests of the United States
Interested parties have 30 days to provide comments to the proposed rule. Comments may be submitted in the following manner:
- Through the Federal Rulemaking Portal
- Email to lgprogram@hq.doe.gov
- Postal Mail / Hand Delivery / Courier to:
David G. Franz, Director, Loan Guarantee Program Office
Office of the Chief Financial Officer
1000 Independence Ave., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20585-0121
More information may be had by contacting David Franz at the above address or by calling 202-586-8336
DOE Announces $59 million in Conditional Loan Guarantees
On July 2, 2009, the Department of Energy ("DOE") announced $59 million in conditional loan guarantees in the form of $16 million for a wind turbine assembly plant and $43 million for a 20 megawatt flywheel energy storage plant.
Nordic Windpower, USA has been conditionally offered a $16 million loan to support the tooling and commercial-scale set up of its assembly plant in Pocatello, Idaho. This assembly plant produces one megawatt two blade turbines which are 10% less costly to manufacture, install, operate, and maintain than competing systems.
Beacon Power was conditionally offered a $43 million loan to support the construction of a 20 megawatt flywheel energy storage plant in Stephentown, New York. The flywheel system is utilizing a newly developed technology to provide frequency regulation services by absorbing and discharging energy to maintain the consistency of power on the electric grid.
Apply Now for REAP Grants and Loan Guarantees
The USDA announced today that it is accepting applications under the Rural Energy for America Program (“REAP”). REAP provides grants and loan guarantees to agricultural producers and rural small businesses to purchase renewable energy systems, make energy efficiency improvements and conduct feasibility studies for renewable energy systems.
REAP funds are available in the following amounts:
- Grants for energy efficiency projects are available for up to the lesser of $250,000 or 25% of the project costs.
- Grants for renewable energy systems are available for up to the lesser of $500,000 or 25% of the project costs.
- Grants for feasibility studies for renewable energy systems are available for up to the lesser of $50,000 or 50% of the costs of the study.
- Loan guarantees are available for up to the lesser of $25 million or 75% of the project costs.
Applicants must be agricultural producers or rural small businesses. Agricultural producers are farmers or ranchers that obtain more than half of their gross income from agricultural operations. Small rural businesses are small businesses, as determined in accordance with the Small Business Administration's small business size standards, located in rural areas. Applications are due July 31, 2009.
