Evergreen Surety has launched a new Electricity and Renewables page covering surety bonds and financial assurance for the power and renewable energy sector. Most energy companies posting financial assurance are using letters of credit or cash deposits, when instead they could be utilizing surety bonds. Evergreen Surety is an independent surety bond agency specializing in renewable energy financial assurance, with direct access to the carriers that underwrite these risks.
The page opens with who the agency works with, from solar developers and onshore and offshore wind developers to battery energy storage (BESS) developers, EPC contractors, transmission companies, wholesale power marketers and energy traders, conventional and pumped hydro operators, and organizations securing electricity delivery obligations for data centers. It also explains why energy companies work with Evergreen Surety.
The agency does surety only, with no insurance products and no competing priorities. It works alongside clients’ CPAs, bankers, and attorneys, and it doesn’t stop at the first underwriter when a bond is hard to place. Very few surety agencies have built dedicated knowledge of ISO/RTO market participant bonds, FERC financial assurance requirements, BOEM offshore wind obligations, or the county-level solar decommissioning ordinance landscape.
The page also compares surety bonds with letters of credit for energy companies, a comparison covered in more depth in the agency’s guide on why a surety bond is better than a letter of credit. A letter of credit is a demand instrument that typically requires restricted cash or a draw on an existing line of credit as collateral. A surety bond, at a comparable cost, requires no collateral and stays off the balance sheet.
Bond types and financial assurance covered within the agency’s energy and commodities practice include:
- ISO and RTO market participant bonds, including ERCOT, NYISO, and PJM
- Surety-backed letters of credit, including for CAISO, MISO, SPP, and ISO-NE market requirements
- Power purchase agreement bonds
- Solar, wind farm, and battery storage (BESS) decommissioning bonds
- BOEM offshore wind financial assurance
- Transmission construction, right-of-way, and interconnection agreement bonds
- Hydroelectric license bonds, dam safety financial assurance, pumped storage project bonds, and FERC relicensing bonds
Energy companies with a bond requirement, or those currently posting letters of credit who want to know whether surety makes sense for their program, can call Eddie Maxfield at 720-492-9258 or email emaxfield@evergreensurety.com. Free consultations can be requested through the Evergreen Surety contact page.
About Evergreen Surety
Evergreen Surety is an independent surety bond agency based in Littleton, Colorado. The agency is not owned by a carrier or affiliated with a larger insurance group, and is licensed throughout the United States and Canada. Evergreen works with energy producers, developers, contractors, and project teams to place complex bond programs with the carriers that specialize in these risks. For more information, visit evergreensurety.com.
About Tom Patton
Tom Patton is the President of Evergreen Surety and a Certified Construction Industry Financial Professional (CCIFP), leading surety bond programs for contractors, developers, and energy producers across the United States and Canada. Drawing on 15+ years of specialty surety experience and appointments with 15+ carriers, Tom is known for building programs that perform when called upon and solving the bond problems other agents walk away from.
About Eddie Maxfield
Eddie Maxfield is a Surety Advisor at Evergreen Surety, an independent, bonding-only agency serving contractors, developers, and energy producers across the United States and Canada. Working alongside President and founder Tom Patton, Eddie is the first call for new construction and commercial surety bond inquiries, with a focus on building relationships across Colorado and the Rocky Mountain region. Reach him at emaxfield@evergreensurety.com or 720-492-9258.
