Verano closes $204m financing for Chile Domeyko solar-storage project build

• Verano Energy secured a USD 204 million package for an 83-MWp solar plant with 660-MWh storage in Chile’s Atacama region.

Verano Energy has lined up USD 204 million to build Domeyko, an 83-MWp solar plant paired with a 660-MWh battery near Vallenar in Chile’s Atacama region. The financing—anchored by lenders including SMBC, Société Générale and Scotiabank—comes with a long-term offtake from energy retailer Abastible and sets the hybrid asset up for commercial operations by late 2026. Total project cost is expected around USD 247 million.

Why it matters: Chile’s northern grid is rich in midday solar and historically prone to curtailment. Batteries change that math, shifting clean megawatt-hours into evening peaks and monetizing fast response services. Co-location trims interconnection spend and lowers round-trip losses compared with standalone sites. With local lenders increasingly comfortable underwriting storage risk, Chile’s hybrid pipeline is moving from pilot scale to replicable templates.

Execution now turns on long-lead items—transformers, switchgear, battery packs—and on tuning plant controls for market participation across energy, capacity, and ancillary products. If Domeyko lands on schedule, expect copy-paste deployments across the region as developers standardize procurement and construction for faster roll-outs.