TotalEnergies has signed a second contract with LyondellBasel to supply a combined 275 MWac (358 MW) of green electricity sourced from its utility-scale Cottonwood Bayou and Brazoria Solar farms in Texas. Through the newly signed 15-year CPPA, LyondellBasell will offtake 163 MW from Brazoria Solar farm, located southwest of Houston, with a capacity of 325 MW and a commercial start-up planned for end of 2025.
Furthermore, through the 12-year CPPA signed in 2022, LyondellBasell will offtake 195 MW from Cottonwood Bayou Solar plant, a project located south of Houston, with a capacity of 455 MW and a commercial start-up planned for end of 2024. The two CPPAs are indexed on merchant prices through an upside-sharing mechanism, under which the companies share any potential upside arising from increased market price over the contract term.
In September 2023, TotalEnergies began the development of solar projects with a total capacity of 263MW in the city of Guillena, in the Andalusian region of Spain. Reportedly, TotalEnergies will construct a total of five solar plants, namely the 51 MW Postigo, the 52 MW Arbotante, the 52 MW Pilastra, the 53 MW La Noria and the 55 MW La Carrascosa.
REGlobal’s Views: Such corporate solar power PPAs are becoming increasingly common as corporates switch to green power to reduce their operating costs and benefit from green credits as well as investments. In fact, corporate renewable PPA market has emerged as one of the fastest growing segments in the renewable energy space with specialised business models and developers.