Big Solar Tech Money. Aurora, the design software company, added $50million in new capital from in their series B after raising $20million in their series A from 2018. From my memory, this could be the biggest software capital raise in our sector. Will be exciting to see what this runway does for the company.
We’re Adding Decimals. The scale of our industry is getting to a point where some of us have to recalibrate our minds. Take for example, the size of the securitizations in residential solar finance or the contracts for tracker supply in the utility scale sector. It seems that rather quickly, everything moved over one decimal and it feels like things are just getting warmed up.
What Grid Is Needed? Aside from the transition from gas to electric vehicles electricity consumption is going to stay largely flat or drop going forward. There have been hundreds of gigawatts of new gas plants with little talk about new grid infrastructure, why does renewable addition all of a sudden needs hundreds of billions in new investments? I have no problem in planning for a new 21st century grid, but that shouldn’t be a cost burden placed on solar and renewables. There is plenty of capacity coming offline that leaves room for new resources.
Biden’s Climate Advisor Pick. Brian Deese is joining the National Economic Council as Biden’s pick and is seen to be the inside man for climate. Deese is getting some negative feedback from the left because he works at Blackrock. The purity test is not for me, I’ve seen lots of solar enabled thanks to capital provided by firms like Blackrock and solar pros going to work at these firms. They, as Deese did, are creating internal pressure to expand ESG capital commitments and increased focus. Note that he comes with a quasi endorsement from Bill McKibben, who happened to perform Deese’s marriage ceremony.
Solar For Clubs. My friends at Sustainable Capital Finance (SCF) have seen an uptick in interest for solar PPAs from schools, country clubs, and golf courses, as these off-takers have been impacted differently than other C&I energy consumers during the COVID-19 crisis. Golf & Country Clubs have seen increased revenue from golf and other outdoor activities, while schools would install solar while students aren’t on school grounds. In both scenarios, savings from a solar PPA are extremely attractive.Click here to learn more about how their subscription-free, proprietary software, the SCF suite, can help to speed up your PPA pricing and transaction process.
- Greentech Media: Solar Software Provider Aurora Raises $50 Million in Series B
- Solar Builder: Loanpal completes largest securitization of residential solar loans
- PV-Magazine: Array Technologies ends 2020 with one more 1 GW solar tracker supply contract
- Bloomberg: High-Voltage Power Lines Are Ugly, and the U.S. Needs More
- Axios: Joe Biden’s expanding climate orbit
- Solar Power World: REC files patent infringement lawsuit against Q CELLS in U.S. courts
- Vox: Want to improve climate policy in the Biden era? Here’s where to donate.
Opinion
Best, Yann