Clearway Starts 210 MW of Honeycomb Phase II Storage in Utah for PacifiCorp, But Keeps the Contract Terms Private
- Energy Storage News Utility-Scale BESS
Marin Holt
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- 7 minutes read
- Phase II capacity: 210 MW
- Phase II investment: $400 million
- Utah fleet energy capacity after Phase II: 2,120 MWh
- Clearway Energy, Inc. purchase price (base): $119 million
- Phase I: 320 MW and 1,280 MWh
Clearway Energy Group has secured financing and started construction on 210 MW of new battery storage at its Honeycomb Energy Center in southern Utah. The second phase adds three battery facilities in Beaver and Iron counties. Long-term contracts with PacifiCorp support the new capacity. The expansion is an investment of about $400 million. Energy-Storage.News reported that Clearway announced the contracts on October 9, 2026.
The new sites bring Clearway’s Utah storage fleet to seven installations with 2,120 MWh of combined energy capacity. KeyBank, U.S. Bank, NORD/LB and CoBank provided the financing. Rosendin is the construction contractor and expects to support at least 150 jobs. Clearway expects about $37 million in additional local tax revenue during operations.
Phase I came online in May
The first Honeycomb phase has four 80 MW battery systems, for 320 MW and 1,280 MWh. Clearway held a ribbon cutting on May 6, 2026. Those facilities operate under 20-year agreements with PacifiCorp. Clearway put the Phase I investment at about $600 million and said the project used American-made Tesla equipment.
Why It Matters
PacifiCorp has now contracted both Honeycomb phases with one developer in the same two counties. Phase II is an additional 210 MW of battery energy storage. Phase I, at 320 MW, is already online. Clearway’s public affiliate expects Phase II to reach commercial operation in 2027. Two numbers decide what this costs PacifiCorp customers: the contract term and the price. Clearway disclosed the 20-year term for Phase I but has not published either figure for Phase II.
The dropdown to Clearway Energy, Inc.
Clearway Energy, Inc., the publicly traded affiliate, plans to buy into the new phase. In its August 5 second-quarter results, it said Clearway Group had offered it cash equity interests in a 210 MW Utah storage portfolio. That release put the potential capital commitment at about $110 million.
Kalkine Media reported that a Form 8-K filed October 7 disclosed a Membership Interest Purchase Agreement dated October 1. Under it, Honeycomb 2 Purchaser LLC agrees to buy the interests from an affiliate of Clearway Energy Group for about $119 million in cash, subject to adjustments. The three project companies are Escalante BESS II LLC, Escalante BESS III LLC and Granite Mountain BESS West LLC. Completion is expected in the fourth quarter of 2027.
What is not disclosed
None of the sources gives the length or price of the Phase II PacifiCorp contracts. The Q2 release described them only as long-term contracts with an investment grade utility. No source states the energy capacity of Phase II alone or names its battery supplier.
Critical Perspective
Clearway put Phase II at about $400 million for 210 MW, and its public affiliate agreed to pay about $119 million for the three project companies. That price sits above the roughly $110 million commitment the affiliate estimated in August, and no source explains the gap. By contrast, GridStor disclosed a 20-year toll with Arizona Public Service when it closed $220 million for a 400 MWh Arizona battery in September. If the Phase II contracts run shorter than the 20 years PacifiCorp signed for Phase I, who carries the risk once they end?
Sources
- Energy-Storage.News, Clearway Energy increases Utah Energy Centre capacity to 2,120MWh
- GreentechLead, Renewables news: Clearway Energy, Tavion, Parapet, MetaWealth
- Kalkine Media, Clearway Energy Subsidiary to Acquire Battery Storage Assets in Utah
- Clearway Energy, Inc., Second Quarter 2026 Results (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1)
- Clearway Energy Group, Utah Celebrates Launch of Clearway’s 320 MW Energy Storage Portfolio
