Lightsource bp closes tax equity deal for 188-megawatt Indiana solar project

Lightsource bp has successfully closed on an $85 million tax equity investment from Bank of America, one of the world’s leading financial institutions, to support construction and operation of the 188-megawatt Honeysuckle Solar project. The investment marks the bank’s fifth tax equity transaction and seventh solar project with Lightsource bp totaling nearly 1.5GW.

Bank of America also participated in the debt financing Lightsource bp raised for Honeysuckle Solar, alongside ING Capital LLC (ING), Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest and Societe Generale.

Located in St. Joseph County, Indiana, Honeysuckle Solar is scheduled to come online in early 2024 and will deliver power to AEP Energy Partners (AEPEP) under a long-term power purchase agreement.

Investing in social and environmental responsibility

The Honeysuckle solar project will abate more than 204,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions each year 1, while creating additional benefits for community members and the local environment.

“A truly sustainable investment will create tangible social and economic benefits for people, in addition to fighting the climate crisis,” said Emilie Wangerman, Lightsource bp’s Interim COO of the United States. “Bank of America is supporting a positive, long-term ripple effect beyond the solar farm itself.”

Notably, the project has created approximately 200 direct jobs during construction, with more than 75% hired locally. Entry-level recruits have the opportunity to apply for apprenticeship programs with three unions represented on-site, turning on-the-job training into lifelong careers.

Lightsource bp is also fostering biodiversity benefits across the entire site, in partnership with NGO the Bee & Butterfly Habitat Fund. A custom mix of vegetation is growing underneath the solar panels and around the site perimeter to provide food and shelter for critical pollinators and other wildlife.

References

1Calculation based on EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator, which uses the AVoided Emissions and geneRation Tool (ADVERT) U.S. national weighted average CO2 marginal emission rate to convert reductions of kilowatt-hours into avoided units of carbon dioxide emissions. See: https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gases-equivalencies-calculator-calculations-and-references. 

Resources

Honeysuckle Solar website 

Videos: Community member testimonials at Honeysuckle 

Case study: Bee & Butterfly Habitat Fund partnership at Honeysuckle Solar