Hope Enterprise Corporation » Project Developers

Hope Enterprise Corporation (HEC) is excited to announce the launch of our Solar for All (SFA) procurement process for developers of residential-serving Community Solar and Multifamily Solar projects in Arkansas and Mississippi. Our goal is to identify and support projects that meet SFA requirements, deliver solar power to households in low-income & disadvantaged communities, and demonstrate a plan to generate sufficient income to service and ultimately repay a loan from HEC.

HEC’s Project Procurement Process

HEC’s project financing for community and multifamily projects will be procured through a competitive process compliant with federal procurement standards and procedures (2 CFR Part 200). Depending on the availability of funds, HEC may complete multiple rounds of project procurement over the five-year Solar for All program. Exact terms will vary by project, but HEC will offer a combination below-market interest rates, principal forgiveness on construction and permanent loans as agreed-upon milestones are met, and waived origination fees.

All open procurements can be found here, on the Work With Us page, along with anonymized questions and answers from potential respondents.

When an RFP process open, HEC will follow the following steps:

Phase 1: RFP Response and Review

Project Eligibility Screening Tool (See Below): Developers can use HEC’s tool to enter high-level project details that will help them assess a community solar or multifamily solar project’s eligibility for SFA financial assistance.
Webinars and Questions: After posting an RFP, HEC will host informational webinars for all potential respondents. HEC may decide to host additional, topic-specific webinars based on market feedback and questions. HEC will also publish a written Q&A document with answers to any questions received by potential respondents.
Submitting a Response to the RFP: Developers will submit a response to this RFP with all of the required components by the deadline indicated in the RFP. HEC will then evaluate RFP responses and any attached materials. HEC may, at its sole discretion, extend the deadline for submission.
HEC Review and Respondent Interviews: Once a proposal is submitted, HEC will begin its review. At its discretion, HEC may request a respondent interview as an opportunity to ask questions about the RFP response.
Scoring and Conditional Notice of Award: HEC will then score all submitted proposals. If your project is selected by HEC, you will receive a conditional notice of award. If you accept the conditional award, your proposal will be passed to the HEC commercial lending team and your entity and project will enter the underwriting process.

Phase 2: Underwriting

Commercial Loan Application: Developers will then submit additional information required for a credit decision. This information will be used to underwrite a loan to a project, the vehicle through which SFA financial assistance would be delivered.
Underwriting: HEC’s commercial lending team will then underwrite the loan and SFA financial assistance. This step will include a full risk assessment of the project, the borrower, and other factors that could impact loan repayment. This step will also include negotiating a set of commitments that developers will need to make to HEC (e.g., reporting, delivering savings to households) and vice versa (e.g., funding terms, milestones).
Loan Approval and Closing: Upon completion of the underwriting process, HEC’s commercial lending team will bring the loan and financial assistance package to HEC’s credit committee, which will make a final decision on the loan. If approved, developers and HEC will then sign loan documents that outline all of the loan terms and conditions at loan closing.
Loan Disbursement: Once the loan documents are signed, HEC will then establish disburse funds to developers for project construction based on the milestones outlined in the loan documents.

Eligibility Screening Tool

Answer the following questions below to get a high level eligibility screen prior to responding the Hope Enterprise Corporation’s SFA Community and Multifamily Projects Request for Proposals.

"*" indicates required fields

First and Last Name

Business or Organization Name

Email Address

Project Geography*

What Hope Enterprise Corporation state is your solar project located in?

HEC’s SFA financial assistance and loan products are only available for projects located in Mississippi or Arkansas. If your project is located in Alabama, Louisiana or Tennessee, please send an email to solarforall@hope-ec.org with a subject line with this format: “Solar Project - STATE."

Project Capacity*

What is the nameplate capacity of your project in kilowatts (kWac)?

Only projects with nameplate capacity 5,000 kW (5 megawatts) or less are eligible for SFA funding

LIDAC Eligibility*

How does the location of your project or the households it serves qualify as an EPA-defined low-income and disadvantaged community (LIDAC)?

SFA requires that projects be located in or serve LIDAC communities. If you have questions about LIDAC eligibility, HEC encourages you to visit this page and/or still submit an RFP response (your project proposal) and work with HEC on adjusting your project to meet LIDAC criteria.

Project Type*

What type of solar project are you proposing?

Residential Requirement

Does your community solar project plan to deliver at least 50% of its benefits to LIDAC households, meaning residential customers?

SFA requires that community solar projects deliver at least 50% of project benefits to LIDAC households. HEC encourages you to still submit an RFP response (your project proposal) and work with HEC on adjusting your project to meet this criteria.

Household Cost Savings

Does your project currently plan to deliver 20% electricity cost savings or equivalent benefits to households served by the project?

Financing Request

What type of financing do you plan to request from HEC?

Construction Loan

Permanent Loan

ITC Bridge Financing

Other

HEC’s SFA products are limited to construction, permanent and ITC bridge financing at this time.

BABA Compliance

Does your project have a plan for Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act compliance?

Davis-Bacon Compliance

Does your project have a plan for Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (DBRA) compliance?

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We look forward to learning more about your project and delivering the benefits of solar power to households and communities across Arkansas and Mississippi.

Hope Enterprise Corporation Project Developers

HEC’s Project Procurement Process

Phase 1: RFP Response and Review

Phase 2: Underwriting

Eligibility Screening Tool

We look forward to learning more about your project and delivering the benefits of solar power to households and communities across Arkansas and Mississippi.