DURHAM,
N.C., May 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cypress Creek
Renewables, a leading solar and storage developer and independent
power producer, announced today that it has completed construction
and reached commercial operation of its newest and largest hybrid
facility, Zier, in Brackettville,
Texas. The facility adds capacity to the grid as the need
for energy in the state grows to an all-time high.
The power plant boasts 208MW of photovoltaic capacity, enough
power to supply more than 41,600 Texas homes annually, with 80MWh of battery
storage, which has already been utilized by the ERCOT grid to ease
supply strain in a time of increased demand.
"Clean reliable power is critical to supporting the remarkable
continuing growth happening in Texas," Sarah
Slusser, CEO of Cypress Creek Renewables said. "We are
incredibly proud to be bringing online more solar and dispatchable
energy from batteries like ours at Zier, which have already proven
vital to keeping the lights on and the air conditioning running
when Texans need it most."
Cypress Creek celebrated the
commercial operation of the site with a ribbon cutting event for
their supply, construction, financial and community partners in
Kinney County on May 2, 2024. The project will provide
$11.5 million in tax revenue to the
county with an additional $11.7
million earmarked for the Bracket Independent School
District.
"Texas needs every available
megawatt, and low-cost renewable energy has proven critical as it
continues to reach new production heights in ERCOT," said
Judd Messer, Texas Vice President of
Advanced Power Alliance. "Solar energy is ensuring sufficient
capacity during day-time peak, setting records nearly every month,
and quick-responding energy storage delivers a substantial
reliability benefit when demand soars or when dispatchable energy
unexpectedly falls offline. A diverse mix of resources is the only
way to ensure our grid achieves both reliability and affordability,
and it's encouraging to see new projects such as Cypress Creek's facility coming online to help
secure these benefits for Texas."
Cypress Creek is backed by EQT
Partners, a purpose-driven global investment organization.
"The Zier Hybrid Solar Site sets a new standard for large scale
renewable energy projects and is a critical step towards supporting
Texas' expanding power demands
driven by a growing population, ever increasing data center demand
with the rise of AI, and electrification," said Alex Darden, EQT Partner and head of
Infrastructure, Americas. "EQT is committed to helping drive the
energy transition forward by backing companies like CCR, and the
immense scale and impact of this project is a testament to
Cypress Creek's commitment to
transforming North America's
energy infrastructure."
Financing for the project was supplied by several partners
including the North American Development Bank (NADBank), a
binational financial institution established to provide support for
projects that preserve, protect or enhance the environment to
advance the well-being of the people of the United States and Mexico. Managing Director of the
infrastructure financier, John
Beckham, spoke at the May 2
event.
"NADBank is pleased to finance projects that contribute to the
State of Texas leading the country in clean energy generation.
Combined solar and battery storage projects, like this one,
are vital for ERCOT's grid reliability and energy availability
to power our great state," said John
Beckham, Managing Director of the NADBank. "Today,
we celebrate this project coming online thanks to a strong
partnership with Cypress Creek Renewables, a like-minded
entity focused on developing sustainable energy
infrastructure."
Cypress Creek has been
developing projects in Texas since
inception in 2014 and, through Cypress Creek Solutions, the
company's operating services business, operates almost 1GW across
the state including 18 Cypress Creek-owned projects. Throughout
Texas, Cypress Creek has a 6GW pipeline of 24
projects in construction or development, including a 100 MWh
standalone battery storage project in Rosenberg, near Houston, expected to reach commercial
operation next month.
About Cypress Creek Renewables
Cypress Creek Renewables is a leading renewables developer and
independent power producer. It develops, finances, owns, and
operates utility-scale and distributed solar and energy storage
projects across the United States
with a mission to power a sustainable future, one project at a
time. Since inception, Cypress
Creek has developed 12GW of solar projects. Today it owns
more than 2GW of solar and has a 30GW solar and storage pipeline.
Cypress Creek's leading O&M
services business, Cypress Creek Solutions, operates and maintains
5GW of solar projects for customers across 24 states. For more
information about Cypress Creek,
please visit ccrenew.com.
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SOURCE Cypress Creek Renewables