Gridscape Solutions, a California based microgrid developer, has received a loan guarantee from the San Francisco Bay Area Air Improvement District’s (BAAIQD) Climate Tech finance program. The funds will go towards building microgrids that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
According to Vipul Gore, Gridscape’s president & CEO, the company currently has $12 to $15 million underway in Bay Area projects. These are in various contracting or development stages, and the clean tech funds will make these projects a reality. While he declined to give a specific dollar amount for the credit line, Gore said it is “several million.”
Several financial, agency and technical partners make up the climate tech finance program under the BAAIQD. Other team members are California’s Infrastructure Economic Development Bank (IBank), which provides financing to public and private agencies, and the Northern California Financial Development Corporation that offers innovative funding solutions to Northern California small businesses.
The Climate Tech Finance team put together a technology qualification and greenhouse gas analysis to deem Gridscape eligible for a 90% loan guarantee. This verification helped Gridscape obtain its line of credit.
Gridscape’s microgrid projects all include electric vehicle charging stations and reduce overall energy costs at a site. The microgrids also provide clean emergency backup power during public safety power shutoffs or other power outages. The company says it has 15 recently completed microgrids in California municipal and commercial facilities.
“Our goal is to use the funds for large-scale production and deployment of our recently introduced integrated microgrid system,” said Gore. “The system includes all the hardware and software needed in an outdoor area, including a battery storage system and a microgrid controller.”
Climate Tech Finance’s goal is to accelerate low-carbon technology development and deployment. It offers financial support to increase the speed of a project’s success and the size of its impact. The project’s goal is to accelerate the development and deployment of low-carbon technology. At the same time, Clean Tech Finance supports innovative climate projects. The Air District’s greenhouse gas analysis ensures that new technologies will reduce short- and long-term greenhouse gas emissions.
“The partnerships we’ve created to encourage more affordable financing for clean energy projects is unique and necessary to help the state reach its greenhouse gas reduction goals,” said Scott Wu, executive director of IBank. “We hope this is the second of many project financings to come.”
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