Recurrent Energy has sold $103 million of tax credits from North Fork, a 160 MW solar farm southwest of Oklahoma City, to Bank of America. The plant is already running and already contracted. What is new is the kind of credit being sold, and the fact that Recurrent had never sold one before.
Key takeaways
- Recurrent Energy secured $103 million for the North Fork solar project in Oklahoma through the sale of production tax credits to Bank of America, announced on 27 June 2024.
- The North Fork transaction is Recurrent Energy's first production tax credit transaction and its first tax credit transfer transaction.
- The 160 MW North Fork solar project is operational and supplies the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority under a 15-year agreement, serving 42 municipally owned electric systems.
- CRC-IB acted as financial advisor to Recurrent Energy and Latham & Watkins served as legal advisor on the North Fork tax credit transfer.
- Enerdatics records 13 tax credit transfers for US solar announced in 2024, and North Fork's $103 million is the largest disclosed among those tied to generating projects rather than manufacturing plants.
What exactly did Bank of America buy?
Bank of America bought the right to claim North Fork's production tax credits against its own tax bill. A production tax credit is paid for each megawatt-hour a project generates, rather than as a one-off percentage of what it cost to build. That makes it a stream of value tied to output, not a lump sum tied to capital spending.
A tax credit transfer is the mechanism that lets the project owner sell that stream for cash. The buyer pays the owner up front or in instalments, and claims the credits as they arise. The owner gives up the credits and gets money it can use today. Unlike tax equity, the buyer takes no ownership stake in the project.
The distinction matters for Recurrent. A transfer leaves it as the sole owner of North Fork. Leap records that the funds will facilitate the long-term ownership and operational costs of the project, which reads as a sponsor planning to hold the asset rather than sell it.
Why sell production credits rather than investment credits?
Because the economics of the plant decide which credit is worth more, and North Fork's are built around steady output. The alternative, an investment tax credit, is calculated as a share of the build cost and is claimed once. A production credit pays out over years in proportion to generation.
A plant that produces a lot of power relative to its cost tends to favour the production credit. North Fork's offtake arrangement points that way. A 15-year contract with the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority gives a predictable home for every megawatt-hour, and a predictable generation profile is exactly what a credit buyer needs to price a stream that depends on output.
Leap does not record which tax years the $103 million covers, how much of the credit stream was sold, or the price per dollar of credit. So the figure is best read as a contracted value for a slice of North Fork's future credits, not a valuation of the plant. Divided across nameplate capacity it equals about $0.64 million per MW, but that ratio describes the size of the sale rather than the asset's worth.
Who stands behind the revenue that makes the credits bankable?
A group of towns does. The Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority buys power on behalf of 42 municipally owned electric systems, so the contract is backed by many small utilities pooled into one counterparty. A credit buyer cares about this because production credits only exist if the plant keeps running and selling power.
The project's history adds to its standing. Leap records that development began in 2018, that construction employed about 500 workers at peak, and that the project will contribute about $26 million to community services. Six years from first development to a credit sale is a long runway, and it ends with an operating plant rather than a construction risk.
Enerdatics' data shows how North Fork compares with its peers. Leap logs 13 tax credit transfers for US solar announced in 2024, nine of them with a disclosed amount, together worth about $1.28 billion. Most of that value sits in manufacturing credits: First Solar's two sales to Visa total $870 million, and Heliene raised $50 million against a module factory. Among the six disclosed transfers tied to solar generation projects, North Fork's $103 million is the largest, ahead of ENGIE's $80 million sale to Schneider Electric, Generate Capital's $64 million, Orsted's $54 million for Mockingbird, Summit Ridge Energy's $40 million and Ellomay Capital's $19 million.
What does the deal signal for US solar tax credit sales?
The deal signals that the transfer market is moving from early adopters to large, experienced sponsors and banks. A first transaction for a developer of Recurrent's size, placed with a major US bank and run with an established advisory team, is the kind of deal that normalises a structure. Buyers gain a template, and other sponsors gain a reference point.
It also shows the market splitting by credit type. Several of the 2024 project transfers in Leap name investment credits, while manufacturing transfers dominate by value. North Fork sits in a smaller group of operating plants selling production credits. Its size suggests that production credit streams can now be sold in nine-figure amounts once the plant is running and contracted.
For comparison, ENGIE's credit sale took a different route, explored in how Schneider Electric turned ENGIE's Texas tax credits into certificates, while TransAlta chose a ten-year arrangement without a disclosed price in its Oklahoma wind credit sale. Recurrent's own financing elsewhere followed a more familiar path, with a construction loan for Bayou Galion in Louisiana. North Fork shows the same sponsor reaching for a newer tool once an asset is complete.
Frequently asked questions
How much did Recurrent Energy raise from the North Fork tax credits?Recurrent Energy secured $103 million by selling production tax credits from the 160 MW North Fork solar project to Bank of America, announced on 27 June 2024. It was the company's first production tax credit transaction and its first tax credit transfer.
Who buys the power from North Fork solar?The Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority buys the output under a 15-year agreement. The authority supplies 42 municipally owned electric systems in Oklahoma. The project is operational and located southwest of Oklahoma City.
What is a production tax credit transfer?A production tax credit is earned for each megawatt-hour a project generates. A transfer lets the project owner sell those credits for cash to a buyer with tax liability, without giving up ownership of the project. The buyer claims the credits against its own tax bill as they arise.
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