Dimension Energy’s 44 MW community solar project in Inyokern, California, will generate $18 million in energy savings for residents and commercial subscribers. The project also represents the largest third-party-owned community solar project in the United States.
A developer, owner and operator of community solar projects, Dimension Energy recently completed construction of the 130-acre project, which will serve a diverse group of residential and commercial customers in the Southern California Edison service territory. Among the beneficiaries are more than 2,000 households, supportive housing organization the Redwood Family Care Network, municipal facilities in the cities of Long Beach and Corona, and commercial offtakers like AT&T and Crown Castle.
While California continues to struggle to develop a scalable community solar program that can serve residents affordably and effectively, Dimension secured more than $100 million in total project capital for the project. The deal, which closed at the end of 2023, includes partners Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), a division of First Citizens Bank, National Bank of Canada, Comerica, and NT Solar.
“Dimension has an unparalleled understanding of community solar markets that allows us to recognize and seize opportunities that other people don’t see,” said Sam Younes, cofounder and chief development officer at Dimension Energy. “We turned a struggling utility scale site into the largest community solar project in the country despite tremendous policy hurdles in the state by taking advantage of the niche Green Tariff Enhanced Community Renewables program. Aside from our Inyokern project, this program has been essentially non-functional.”
As the largest non-utility owned U.S. community solar project, the Inyokern facility will deliver enough renewable energy to serve the cities of Corona and Long Beach, while also enabling AT&T and Crown Castle to realize their renewable energy commitments. Dimension aims for future community solar projects to replace polluting peaker plants in historically impacted communities and provide additional support for community organizations like the Redwood Family Care Network.
“We’re grateful to our industry-leading financial partners for their commitment to community solar and their trust in our ability to execute on this unparalleled project,” said Patrick Schaufelberger, senior VP of project finance at Dimension. “Inyokern is a unique project that required thoughtful underwriting that our fantastic partners were able to deliver on.”
Acquisition, management, billing and support services provider PowerMarket helped secure subscribers for the project.
“We are thrilled to have brought key partners like the City of Long Beach, the City of Corona, and Redwood Family Care Network, ensuring the project’s success and maximizing its positive impact on communities across Southern California,” said Jason Kaplan, president of PowerMarket. “We look forward to continuing to build on our strong relationship with Dimension for years to come.”
Tags: Community Solar
