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Houston renewables developer launches platform to invest in energy transition projects

Bildmore expects to invest in 10 to 15 third-party, utility-scale clean energy projects each year. Photo via Bildmore.com

Houston-based EnCap Energy Transition Fund has launched a platform that will take minority equity stakes in battery storage systems, solar energy systems, and other energy transition projects in the U.S.

With its new Bildmore arm, the EnCap fund aims to fuel development of renewable energy projects that can’t attract traditional tax equity financing. Bildmore expects to invest in 10 to 15 third-party, utility-scale clean energy projects each year.

Bildmore seeks to capitalize on clean energy incentives tucked into the federal Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, including the ability of projects to sell tax credits. Specifically, the platform says it hopes to address “a chronic short supply” of tax equity deals due to heightened demand triggered by the inflation reduction law.

EnCap is no stranger to utility-scale solar power and battery storage systems. The fund backs Houston-based Broad Reach Power and Austin-based Jupiter Power, two of the largest players in the U.S. market for battery storage.

David Haug leads Bildmore as its CEO. He is co-founder and senior managing director of Houston-based Arctas Capital Group, which invests in energy infrastructure projects.

“Bildmore will focus on … battery storage and solar projects, particularly those which have chosen to leave all or part of their energy output available for ‘merchant’ sale rather than be sold under long-term contracts,” Haug says in a news release. “We want to help those development teams lacking the deep balance sheets typically required by tax equity providers.”

EnCap Investments, sponsor of the EnCap Energy Transition Fund, manages capital from more than 350 U.S. and international investors. Since its founding in 2019, EnCap Investments has raised 25 institutional investment funds totaling about $41 billion to support independent energy businesses in the U.S.

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A View From HETI

Corpus Christi, Texas is already facing prolonged drought and water concerns. Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images

A draft of Texas’ 2027 State Water Plan is drawing concerns from some water protection advocates who say it fails to account for one growing industry: data centers.

The plan, created by the Texas Water Development Board, will guide tens of billions of dollars in water development projects over the coming decades.

On Memorial Day, people packed Lake Travis to enjoy the water and sunshine while the lake remains near full capacity. But some advocates warn drought conditions could quickly return.

“Once we get into August, September, we'll be probably right back in the same drought situation,” said Mike Clifford with the Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance.

The Texas Water Development Board released the draft plan in April. It recommends thousands of water projects carrying a projected cost of $174 billion over 50 years.

“We're not as shocked about the dollar amounts as some people are,” Clifford said. "To secure our water future, that's not an insane amount to ask for."

However, Clifford said his organization was surprised the draft does not specifically account for the growing impact of data centers, which can consume large amounts of water.

“If you leave the data centers out, it's not really a plan in our opinion. It's going to have to be changed and it's going to fall short,” Clifford said.

According to Data Center Map, Texas is currently home to 461 data centers.

Clifford argues the state should use projected future growth, not just historical data, when planning for long-term water needs.

“They're looking at the previous 10 years or 20 years or whatever, and we didn't have a lot of data centers in Texas,” he said.

Researchers at the the University of Texas at Austin estimate data centers could account for as much as 9 percent of Texas’ total water use by 2040, or potentially surpass the oil and gas industry that same year.

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Read the full story from CultureMap news partner KVUE.com.

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