The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Dominance Financing (EDF) closed a $1.6 billion loan guarantee for DTE Gas Company.
The loan guarantee was provided to finance a gas renewal program and compression station replacement project, including the upgrade of DTE’s legacy gas distribution infrastructure (including gas mains and service lines) located within existing rights-of-way and easements.
The projects are intended to address leakage associated with existing materials, improve long-term system reliability, increase system capacity and ensure compliance with environmental and safety standards, and will include the purchase and installation of a compression station. Under this project, DTE is currently replacing 160 miles of legacy gas pipeline each year and expects to replace 800 miles over the term of the loan guarantee.
The loan guarantee was issued under the EDF’s Energy Dominance Financing Program, which guarantees loans for projects that retool, repower, repurpose or replace existing energy infrastructure; enable operating infrastructure to increase capacity or output; or support or enable the provision of known or forecastable electric supply.
S&C has previously advised the Department of Energy on other financings, including its historic $26.5 billion of loan guarantees to Alabama Power Company and Georgia Power Company and its $861.3 million loan guarantee to finance the construction of two solar photovoltaic farms in Puerto Rico following the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and María in 2017.
The S&C team representing the EDF included John Estes, Benjamin Kent and Nicholas Baker.