SMT Energy secures $135M for 160MW Houston BESS project
The project will support the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid by providing access to stored energy, and help power annual consumption of 8,800 homes in Texas.
US company SMT Energy has secured USD 135 million for a 160MW/320 battery energy storage facility in Houston, Texas.
While Macquarie and KeyBanc acted as joint lead arrangers for a $100m project financing facility, KeyBanc also served as financial advisor to SMT Energy, according to a media release.
“SMT is grateful to the teams at Macquarie, KeyBanc and FlexGen for their expertise and deep industry knowledge to get this complex deal across the line,” J.J. Switzer, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of SMT Energy, said.
“We are pleased to work with SMT on this transaction, which demonstrates our ability to bring multiple capabilities together to provide clients with innovative solutions in this growing market,” Macquarie commodities and global markets managing director Tom Colebatch said.
FlexGen Power Systems is supplying the equipment and its HybridOS energy management system software for the project, called SMT Houston IV, which is expected to begin commercial operation next year.
The project will support the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid by providing access to stored energy, and help power annual consumption of 8,800 homes in Texas.
“KeyBanc is excited to serve as joint lead arranger and financial advisor for SMT on the Houston IV project,” Tyler Nielsen, Director in KeyBanc Capital Markets’ Utilities, Power and Renewables Group, said. “This partnership shows our dedication to SMT Energy and the battery energy storage market, and we look forward to supporting storage deployment for many years to come.”
SMT Energy started as a solar energy developer in 2019 but has now expanded to encompass over 1.5GW renewable energy projects across the US with a value of more than USD 1.5 billion.
With this closing, SMT Energy has eighteen utility-scale battery energy storage assets, encompassing approximately 500 MWH, in operation or construction. In addition, SMT Energy has a 2 GWH pipeline of battery energy storage projects in ERCOT and Southwest Power Pool targeted for commercial operation by 2030.