Renewable energy developer Avantus has brought its Aratina 1 solar-plus-storage project in Kern County, California into commercial operation, while simultaneously securing financing to advance a second phase at the same site — moves that together set the stage for nearly 1 gigawatt-hour of combined battery storage capacity.

Aratina 1 Now Online

The first phase of the Aratina Solar Center pairs 200 MW of solar photovoltaic generation with 500 MWh of battery energy storage. Located in Kern County, the facility is now delivering electricity to the grid under long-term power purchase agreements with two community choice aggregators: Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) and Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE). Both PPAs cover the full output of the project. The completion of Aratina 1 marks a significant milestone for Avantus as it works to expand its California portfolio of paired solar and storage assets.

Phase 2 Financing Secured

Alongside the commercial operation announcement, Avantus disclosed that it has closed $525 million in financing for Aratina 2, the project's second phase. That installation is sized at 150 MW of solar and 452 MWh of battery storage. Unlike the first phase, Aratina 2 will deliver power under a 15-year power purchase agreement with Southern California Edison (SCE), one of the state's largest investor-owned utilities. Construction timing for Aratina 2 was not detailed in the available source materials.

Combined Capacity and Context

When both phases are fully operational, the Aratina Solar Center will carry a combined battery storage capacity of 952 MWh across the two installations. The broader project reflects a pattern of large-scale solar-plus-storage development accelerating in California, where grid reliability requirements and clean energy mandates have driven demand for dispatchable renewable resources. Community choice aggregators and investor-owned utilities alike have been active in contracting for paired solar and storage capacity as the state pursues its decarbonization targets. Avantus, which has been building out a pipeline of utility-scale projects across the western United States, has structured Aratina's two phases with distinct offtake arrangements — the first serving community-based load aggregators and the second a major regulated utility — illustrating the range of procurement pathways available to large-scale developers in the California market.