Tonopah Solar Energy: Crescent Dunes CSP Sale Process

Tonopah Solar Energy, LLC, owner of the Crescent Dunes concentrated solar power plant near Tonopah, Nevada, filed chapter 11 on January 21, 2026 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The filing is the company's second chapter 11 since 2020. The debtor says it will fund operations with a $10 million DIP facility from secured lender Crescent Dunes Finance, Inc. while it runs a court-supervised section 363 sale.

The company's sole asset is a 110 MW solar power tower that uses heliostats to heat molten salt for thermal storage, enabling electricity generation after sunset. Federal environmental materials describe Crescent Dunes as a central receiver tower facility, and NREL's SolarPACES profile lists a 110 MW nameplate capacity. Trade coverage has noted the plant's 10,000+ heliostats and a 640-foot tower designed to concentrate sunlight for thermal storage.

Court filings describe repeated molten-salt tank leaks, reduced operating temperatures, and the loss of the long-term NV Energy contract. The current short-term PPA with Switch expires on February 21, 2026, and the bankruptcy timetable is designed to position the asset for sale before that date.

Debtor	Tonopah Solar Energy, LLC
Case Number	1:26-bk-10060
Court	U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware
Petition Date	January 21, 2026
Primary Asset	Crescent Dunes 110 MW CSP plant
Location	Tonopah, Nevada
Land Lease	1,620 acres (BLM lease through Dec. 31, 2039)
Employees	None (third-party O&M contractor)
Primary Secured Creditor	Crescent Dunes Finance, Inc.
Prepetition Debt	~ $173 million
DIP Facility	Up to $10 million (new money)
DIP Interest	4.5% PIK; +2.0% default interest
Claims Agent	Epiq
PPA Status	Switch PPA expires Feb. 21, 2026

Restructuring Strategy and First-Day Relief

Sale-first Chapter 11 design. The first-day filings center on a section 363 sale of substantially all assets, with a proposed bidding calendar aimed at a March 2026 auction and sale hearing. The debtor did not designate a stalking horse at filing but requested authority to do so later and to offer bid protections if a stalking horse emerges. The compressed schedule is intended to preserve value while the current PPA remains in effect.

Interim DIP order and cash collateral. Court filings state that Crescent Dunes Finance, Inc. is providing a $10 million DIP facility, with $5 million available on an interim basis and the remaining $5 million upon entry of a final order. Judge J. Kate Stickles approved interim access to the first $5 million at a January 24, 2026 hearing. The interim DIP order sets a 4.5% per annum interest rate payable monthly in kind, with a 2.0% default-rate increase. The DIP lender receives priming liens on substantially all assets, and the debtor is authorized to use cash collateral under an approved budget.

Milestones and termination triggers. The DIP motion includes milestones requiring entry of a final DIP order within 55 days, approval of a sale order within 80 days, plan confirmation within 125 days, and consummation within 225 days. The interim order also sets termination triggers, including the earliest of six months after the petition date, a sale of substantially all assets, plan effectiveness, or an event of default.

Challenge period. The interim DIP order provides a 75-day challenge period for any committee and authorizes a $25,000 challenge budget.

Utilities and adequate assurance. The utilities motion requests a $107,130 adequate assurance deposit, roughly half of estimated monthly utilities cost. The interim utilities order requires the deposit within 20 days of the petition date and sets a process for additional assurance requests, with unresolved disputes to be scheduled for the next omnibus hearing.

Cash management structure. Court filings identify operating accounts at PNC, escrow accounts at Synovus for DIP proceeds and professional fees, and a PayPal prefunded depository account. The interim cash management order permits continued use of existing accounts, grants a 30-day waiver of strict section 345(b) compliance for any non-conforming accounts, caps the PayPal balance at $30,000, and requires notice to the U.S. Trustee and any committee within 15 days of opening new accounts. The cash management motion also identifies a $2.5 million indemnification escrow at Citibank as non-estate funds.

No employees; contractor compensation. The debtor reports no employees and relies on a third-party operator (ACS Industrial Activities) for daily plant operations. The compensation motion seeks authority to pay independent contractors and independent managers, with an interim cap of $83,700 and specific sub-caps of $49,300 for contractors, $34,300 for managers, and $100 for reimbursable expenses.

Taxes, fees, and customer programs. The court entered an interim order authorizing payment of prepetition taxes and fees up to $96,000 in the ordinary course. A separate interim order authorizes the debtor to continue, modify, or terminate customer programs, with notice requirements for material changes.

Claims agent and privacy protections. The court approved Epiq as claims and noticing agent effective as of the petition date. The court also entered a PII redaction order permitting redaction of individual home addresses from the creditor matrix and other filings, with unredacted versions filed under seal.

Stay relief for CMB litigation. The debtor seeks limited stay relief to allow ongoing CMB litigation to proceed to judgment while maintaining the stay against enforcement actions.

DIP Term	Interim Order Summary
Facility size	Up to $10 million (new money)
Interim availability	$5 million
Interest rate	4.5% per annum (PIK)
Default rate	+2.0%
Challenge period	75 days; $25,000 budget
Key milestones	Final DIP order (55 days), sale order (80 days), plan confirmation (125 days), consummation (225 days)
Termination triggers	Earliest of six months after petition date, sale consummation, plan effectiveness, or event of default

Sale Process and Key Case Dates

Bidding procedures schedule. The bidding procedures motion proposes a February 27, 2026 bid deadline, a March 4, 2026 auction if needed, and a March 13, 2026 sale hearing. A hearing on the bidding procedures motion is scheduled for February 11, 2026, with objections due February 4, 2026. The schedule places the proposed auction less than two weeks after the Switch PPA expires on February 21, 2026.

Final order hearings. The court scheduled the final DIP and utilities hearings for February 18, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. ET, with objections due February 11, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. ET. The timeline clusters the financing and utilities approvals in the same week as the bidding procedures hearing.

Milestone	Date
Bidding procedures hearing	Feb. 11, 2026 (11:00 a.m. ET)
Bidding procedures objections due	Feb. 4, 2026 (4:00 p.m. ET)
Final DIP and utilities hearing	Feb. 18, 2026 (10:00 a.m. ET)
Final DIP/utilities objections due	Feb. 11, 2026 (4:00 p.m. ET)
Switch PPA expires	Feb. 21, 2026
Bid deadline	Feb. 27, 2026 (4:00 p.m. ET)
Auction (if needed)	Mar. 4, 2026 (10:00 a.m. ET)
Sale objections due	Mar. 11, 2026 (4:00 p.m. ET)
Sale hearing	Mar. 13, 2026

Asset and Operations Overview

Facility design and scale. Crescent Dunes is a 110 MW concentrated solar power plant that uses a central tower to heat molten salt for thermal storage and later electricity generation. Federal environmental materials describe the project as a central receiver tower facility located about 13 miles northwest of Tonopah, Nevada. NREL's project profile lists the developer as SolarReserve and ACS Cobra, with Tonopah Solar Energy as operator and NV Energy as the original offtaker.

Thermal storage capability. Crescent Dunes was designed to store heat and generate electricity after sunset. Industry coverage describes ten hours of full-load storage, a feature that was central to its original value proposition as a dispatchable renewable asset.

Land footprint and lease. Court filings state the debtor leases 1,620 acres of a 2,250-acre BLM site and that the lease runs through December 31, 2039. The long-term land lease is a critical element of any sale, because it governs site access, operating rights, and the feasibility of repowering or repurposing the facility.

Operations model. The debtor reports no employees and relies on a third-party O&M provider to operate the plant. This structure reduces payroll liabilities but also concentrates operational continuity in a small set of service contracts that must be maintained or assumed in any sale.

Facility Attribute	Detail
Technology	CSP tower with molten-salt storage
Capacity	110 MW
Location	Tonopah, Nevada
Storage design	10 hours full-load storage (design)
Commercial operation	2015 (reported)
Land lease	BLM lease through 2039

PPA History and Revenue Profile

Original NV Energy PPA. The Crescent Dunes project was initially financed around a long-term PPA with NV Energy. State energy documents list a 110 MW "Tonopah Crescent Dunes" PPA with a 2015 commercial operation date, a termination date in 2040, and an annual contracted supply amount of 485,000 MWh. Industry reporting puts the PPA price at about 13.5 cents per kWh.

Termination and short-term contracts. Court filings state NV Energy terminated the original long-term contract in 2019 and that subsequent PPAs were shorter term. The debtor entered into a short-term NV Energy PPA effective November 1, 2021 that included a take-or-pay structure. The current contract with Switch (Switched On, LLC) runs from May 30, 2025 through February 21, 2026.

Revenue volatility in Chapter 11. Without a long-term PPA, the plant's economics depend on short-term pricing and consistent operations. The Chapter 11 process is therefore structured around a rapid sale timeline that aligns with the current PPA's expiration, giving a buyer the opportunity to renegotiate offtake or repurpose the site for alternative generation.

PPA Stage	Key Features
Original NV Energy PPA	Long-term contract; 25-year term; pricing reported near 13.5 cents/kWh
Post-termination contracts	Short-term PPAs with reduced visibility
Switch PPA	May 30, 2025 to Feb. 21, 2026

Operational Challenges and Performance

Recurring molten-salt leaks. Court filings describe molten-salt tank leaks in 2016, 2019, 2022, and 2023 that led to shutdowns and reduced output. Public reporting on a 2016 salt leak shows how early technical failures disrupted operations, and later leaks created additional downtime.

Operating temperature reductions. The debtor reports that it reduced operating temperatures from roughly 1,050 F to about 850 to 900 F to mitigate leak risk. That change lowered maximum energy production from about 100 MWh to roughly 55 MWh, according to court filings, and reduced the plant's ability to deliver the output levels envisioned under the original PPA.

Shutdown periods and restart attempts. Court filings state the plant was in standby from January to May 2025 after a prior PPA expired, resumed under the Switch short-term PPA, and experienced another temporary shutdown in September 2025 before restarting in November 2025. Industry reporting around the 2020 bankruptcy described the facility as offline since April 2019, underscoring the gaps between planned and actual output.

Operational Event	Timing
Commercial operations begin	November 2015
Molten-salt tank leak	October 2016
NV Energy termination notice	October 2019
Plant reported offline	April 2019 (reported in 2020 coverage)
Molten-salt tank leak	February 2022
Molten-salt tank leak	February 2023
Standby period	January to May 2025
Switch PPA term	May 30, 2025 to Feb. 21, 2026

Financing and Federal Support

DOE loan guarantee and early financing. Crescent Dunes was financed with a DOE loan guarantee of $737 million, listed in DOE loan program history as a September 2011 loan guarantee, alongside equity investors including ACS Cobra and Santander. Financing announcements described a long-term NV Energy contract and projected more than 500,000 MWh of annual generation, showing the scale of expectations embedded in the original capital structure.

Project cost and economics. Industry reporting described Crescent Dunes as a roughly $1 billion project with power prices far above later photovoltaic benchmarks. That analysis also cited 2019 output falling well below expected levels and tied the economics to the availability of long-term offtake pricing.

Prior bankruptcy and federal recovery. Tonopah Solar Energy and Cobra Energy filed for chapter 11 protection in 2020, and the U.S. Department of Energy later announced a settlement to recover $200 million from the project. The case history highlights the gap between the original financing plan and the project's operational results.

Prepetition capital structure in 2026. Court filings state that Crescent Dunes Finance, Inc. holds about $173 million in secured debt as of the petition date and is also providing the DIP facility, making it the central stakeholder in the restructuring and sale process.

Industry Context for CSP and Dispatchable Solar

CSP technology headwinds. Crescent Dunes entered operation as a flagship CSP-with-storage project, but industry analysis argued that CSP struggled against lower-cost photovoltaic alternatives as PV pricing fell to around $30/MWh while Crescent Dunes contracted near about $135/MWh. Those market dynamics reduced the appetite for long-term CSP offtake contracts and constrained refinancing options.

Comparable project signals. The Ivanpah solar-thermal plant announced a shutdown plan in 2025, with two of three units expected to close beginning in 2026 pending regulatory approval. That announcement highlights the broader challenges facing large-scale CSP facilities and provides context for why Crescent Dunes' sale process must account for evolving market preferences and technology economics.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Crescent Dunes project?

Crescent Dunes is a 110 MW concentrated solar power plant near Tonopah, Nevada that uses heliostats to focus sunlight on a central tower receiver and stores heat in molten salt. Project profiles describe a 110 MW CSP facility designed for dispatchable output.

Why did Tonopah Solar Energy file for Chapter 11?

Court filings cite recurring operational disruptions, the loss of a long-term PPA, and a short-term offtake contract that expires on February 21, 2026. The Chapter 11 filing is intended to fund operations through a DIP facility and run a court-supervised sale process.

What is the DIP financing and who provides it?

Court filings describe a $10 million DIP facility from Crescent Dunes Finance, Inc., with $5 million available on an interim basis and the remainder upon a final order. The interim order sets 4.5% PIK interest, provides priming liens on substantially all assets, and includes milestones tied to a sale and plan confirmation.

What are the key dates in the sale process?

The proposed schedule includes a February 27, 2026 bid deadline, a March 4, 2026 auction if needed, and a March 13, 2026 sale hearing. The court set a February 11, 2026 hearing on bidding procedures, with objections due February 4, 2026.

What is the status of the power purchase agreements?

The original long-term NV Energy PPA was terminated in 2019, and the current short-term Switch PPA runs through February 21, 2026. Without a new long-term offtake contract, the project's revenue depends on short-term arrangements.

Does the debtor have employees or operate the plant directly?

Court filings state the debtor has no employees and relies on a third-party operator for daily plant operations. The compensation motion covers independent contractors and independent managers rather than payroll employees.

What is the status of the CMB litigation?

The debtor is seeking limited stay relief to allow ongoing CMB litigation to proceed to judgment while keeping the automatic stay in place for enforcement actions.

Who is the claims agent for Tonopah Solar Energy?

Epiq serves as the claims and noticing agent. The firm maintains the official claims register and distributes case notifications to creditors and parties in interest.

For more restructuring coverage and case updates, explore the ElevenFlo blog.