Client Alerts
DOE Announces Its First Loan Guarantee Funding Opportunity for Renewable Generation Projects That Employ Commercial Technologies
October 21, 2009
Jeff Schroeder, Ellis Butler, Eric Pogue and Alan Eskandari
On October 7, 2009, the Department of Energy (the DOE) announced the first opportunity for renewable energy generation projects employing commercially available technologies including wind, solar and biomass generators to apply for loan guarantees under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the Recovery Act). Under the October 7, 2009 solicitation (the Solicitation), the DOE will make up to $750 million available to pay the credit subsidy cost for such loan guarantees which the DOE estimates will support as much as $8 billion in lending to eligible projects.
In order to achieve the DOEs objective of issuing loan guarantees and deploying new renewable generation resources as quickly as possible consistent with prudent management, the Solicitation introduces the DOEs new Financial Institution Partnership Program (or FIPP) by which the DOE plans to leverage private sector expertise and capital to expedite the DOEs ability to get funding to shovel-ready projects.