Canadian Solar to provide 315MWh BESS, 2GWp solar for Sunraycer projects in Texas
Solar PV and battery energy storage system (BESS) firm Canadian Solar will deliver 315MWh of BESS and up to 2GWp of solar modules to Sunraycer Renewables for projects in Texas, US.
Canadian Solar has executed three agreements with Sunraycer for two BESS projects in Texas and the purchase of up to 2GWp of solar modules for various Sunraycer projects.
E-Storage, Canadian Solar’s energy storage subsidiary, will provide 188MWh DC to the Gaia project in Navarro County, Texas and 127MWh DC to the Midpoint project in Hill County, Texas. The projects are scheduled for commissioning in Q3 of 2025.
The projects will both use over 60 SolBank 3.0 battery containers. The containerised energy storage system features lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) cells, e-Storage’s battery management system software, and a modular design.
Sunraycer will also deploy up to 2GWp of Canadian Solar’s solar modules across various projects. Canadian Solar says the modules offer up to 85% bifaciality and 23.3% module efficiency, with low power degradation and high energy yield. The company claims these features will reduce the levelised cost of energy (LCOE) and system cost.
Colin Parkin, president of e-Storage said of the recent agreements: “We are excited to strengthen our presence in Texas with the Gaia and Midpoint projects. These two battery energy storage installations represent a significant contribution to Texas’s growing renewable energy infrastructure, enhancing grid stability and supporting the state’s clean energy transition.”
Texas, where the grid is managed by ERCOT, is the second most active BESS market in the US after California, though developing there is not without its challenges.
In Van Zandt County, 20 residents have filed a lawsuit seeking damages and an injunction (Premium access article) against the renewable energy investment arm of Finland’s Taaleri Group and the US arm of UK-based RES Group over the construction of a lithium-ion BESS.
This followed the October news that council members at Katy, Texas voted to deny a Special Use Permit for a 500MW standalone BESS proposed by IPP Vesper Energy (Premium access article).
On the upstream side, Texas is also where Freyr acquired Chinese firm Trina Solar’s manufacturing facility, in Wilmer. Freyr claims creating US solar production facilities will solve a bottleneck for developers.
Canadian Solar meanwhile was also involved in taking over a BESS and cell manufacturing facility in Kentucky, in a factory vacated by metal-hydrogen battery company EnerVenue. Canadian Solar is set to invest an initial US$384 million into the facility through e-Storage.
The deployment of solar and energy storage projects in the US should be boosted by upstream projects like these. However, time will tell how newer US facilities compare to established facilities elsewhere, notably in China which dominates the solar and BESS markets.