Diode Ventures LLC recently sold a photovoltaic (PV)-solar power project in development in Fort Bend County, Texas, near Houston to ACCIONA SA, a Spanish conglomerate dedicated to renewable energy.  

An affiliate of Black & Veatch, Diode Ventures bought the Fort Bend Solar project from global property group and contractor Lendlease in 2018. The company, which offers clients reliable, turnkey asset-development solutions for large-scale infrastructure programs, teamed with Enfinite Capital to develop the Fort Bend Solar project to a Full Notice to Proceed (FNTP) state.

On Sept. 28, Diode said in a statement that ACCIONA acquired 100% of the PV-solar power project in Fort Bend. The 240-megawatt (MW) ac/315 MW dc PV project represents ACCIONA’s fourth investment in Texas, and its first PV-solar project in the state.

In a statement commenting on the acquisition, Rafael Esteban, CEO of ACCIONA’s energy division in North America, called the Fort Bend Solar project a flagship in the company’s U.S. portfolio.

“We are excited to invest in Fort Bend County and to bring this solar project forward,” Esteban said. “This is an opportunity to continue our success in the State of Texas.”

ACCIONA already operates three wind power projects in the Lone Star State in Cameron County.

The Fort Bend Solar project is expected to create about 300 jobs during the construction phase. When operational, the project will give ACCIONA more than 750 MW of renewable capacity in Texas. 

Additionally, the project will be within the territory of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). ERCOT is a membership-based nonprofit corporation that manages electricity flow to more than 26 million Texas customers, representing about 90% of the state’s electric load, according to the Diode company release.

ACCIONA has committed to delivering 1,600 MW of new solar across the U.S. by 2023. Currently, solar and wind projects owned and operated by ACCIONA generate more than 1,000 MW of power in the U.S. and Canada.

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