Global law firm Clifford Chance has advised the US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (DOE LPO) on its US$72.8 million partial loan guarantee of a U.S. Bank loan to finance the development of a solar-plus-energy-storage microgrid to be located on the tribal lands of the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians near Alpine, California.

This project is supported by a grant from the California Energy Commission, investments from U.S. Bancorp Impact Finance, a subsidiary of U.S. Bank, and Starbucks. Its construction will provide the Viejas Band with reliable utility-scale renewable energy generation and storage infrastructure through the installation of a 15 MW photovoltaic solar generation system and a 70 MWh battery long-duration energy storage system.

Energy & Infrastructure counsel Peter Hughes led the Clifford Chance team along with associate Jenny Ahn. The wider Clifford Chance team included Energy & Infrastructure finance associates Serena Seaman, Anna O’Neil, and Douglas Mulliken; partners Alex Leff (tax) and Marcia Hook, associate Adriana Velez-Leon (energy regulatory), partner Ty’Meka Reeves-Sobers and associate Hannah Ebersole (environmental).

This work continues Clifford Chance’s extensive record advising DOE LPO on energy transition projects, including recently advising DOE LPO on the US$102.1 million financing for the expansion of the Syrah Vidalia facility producing material used in batteries for electric vehicles, the US$504.4 million loan guarantee for the ACES clean hydrogen production and storage project, and the US$2 billion loan guarantee for Ultium Cells’ lithium-ion battery manufacturing facilities.