SUSI Partners agrees tax equity deal for 100MW of Texas storage

SUSI Partners, acting on behalf of the SUSI Energy Transition Fund (SETF) and US clean energy developer SMT Energy, have secured a tax equity investment from specialised tax equity investor Greenprint Capital for a co-owned 100 MW battery storage portfolio located in South Texas. 

The portfolio was developed by SMT Energy, which managed the assets during construction and will continue overseeing commercial operations as minority owner. 

The portfolio consists of ten utility-scale standalone battery energy storage projects that will help stabilise strained power grids in the region by balancing mismatches of electricity supply and demand.

With all assets expected to start commercial operations in the coming months, the investment signals a “high level of confidence in the assets’ ability to operate successfully in the ERCOT electricity market”, a statement said.

In the US, battery energy storage systems became eligible for investment tax credits after the passage of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, which takes account of the growing importance of battery storage technology in balancing electricity grids and enabling the shift to renewable energy supplies. The majority of projects in the SETF Texas battery storage portfolio furthermore qualify for a higher ITC rate due to their contribution to the economic transition of so-called ‘Energy Communities’ - coal, oil and gas, and power plant communities - which historically have been disproportionately reliant on the fossil fuel industry and equally burdened by the resulting pollution.