Tag Archives: SEIA

kWh Analytics Compiles List Of Active Tax-Equity Investors

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

As the tax incentives begin to wind down, it’s even more important than ever to be able to identify investors who can afford to take on sufficient tax equity to consummate solar projects.

To do the due diligence to figure out who is currently interested in using equity to fund the project, however, can often increase costs and render deals undoable.

Which is why having a company like kWh Analytics, a solar risk manager, do some portion of the work for you is such a boon. This morning, the company released its Solar Lendscape for Tax Equity, a free resource that profiles 28 tax equity investors. For developers looking to raise capital, the Solar Lendscape catalogs the industry’s most active debt and tax equity investors, including details on check size, target market segments, and product type.

The industry’s first Solar Lendscape was released in June 2018 and initially focused exclusively on providers of debt. Following industry interest, kWh Analytics developed Solar Lendscape for Tax Equity to also include an overview of tax equity investors.

[wds id=”3″]

Project development is known to be a complex engagement in which the rules and variables regularly change. One of the most important variables for a developer to track is the availability of capital. Leveraging their experience working with investors, kWh Analytics built a simple, free tool to help developers assess the investor landscape and find the right partner for their projects.

“Solar Lendscape should prove a useful tool for developers trying to raise capital for their projects,” says Keith Martin, Partner at Norton Rose Fulbright. “It was inevitable that someone would create an internet portal to help with that process.”

Fast facts from the Solar Lendscape for Tax Equity:

  • Most organizations are using partnerships as a preferred structure.
  • Nearly a dozen investors are investing in community solar.
  • There was an influx of new tax equity providers in 2017, following the extension of the investment tax credit in 2016.

SEIA Issues Comprehensive Update To Solar Tax Guide

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Even the most experienced tax advisers may not know how to navigate the complex matter of solar tax incentives and credits. That’s why it’s important to have solar-specific experts weigh in on projects. In particular, with the investment tax credits starting to phase out, understanding tax incentives becomes all the more critical.

Oh, if only there were a guide of some sort that people could use to figure it out.

Enter the Solar Energy Industries Association, which has been putting together various versions of a guide for the last 20 years. Now they’ve released Version 9.0, the first comprehensive update of the SEIA Solar Tax Manual since 2016.

Among several updates, the new guide incorporates the commence construction guidance issued by the IRS earlier this year and includes the effects of the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” enacted at the end of 2017.

[wds id=”3″]

“Given all of the recent changes, the demand for this resource has never been greater,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, SEIA’s president and CEO. “This comprehensive document provides SEIA members a leg up, as it explains and fully outlines the potential tax benefits and deal structures for solar projects.”

Developed with the help of Keith Martin at Norton Rose Fullbright US LLP, the SEIA Solar Tax Manual covers tax credits for both commercial and residential solar projects, tax credit bonds, loan guarantees, low-interest loans and grants, state tax considerations, and more.

“The SEIA Tax Manual is a valuable SEIA member benefit,” said Lee Peterson, Senior Tax Manager for CohnReznick’s National Renewable Energy Practice. “It is incredibly valuable because it collects in one place the primary federal tax rules and concepts that drive the industry, while being easy for non-tax specialists to read and use.”

The SEIA Solar Tax Manual is a SEIA members-only benefit. To view the executive summary and learn more about becoming a SEIA member, go here.

Wind, Solar Join Forces In New Wind Solar Alliance

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

As wind and solar continue to grow as a percentage of U.S. electricity production, it makes sense for new groups to form to bring to bear the combined power of the industries in the political fights to come. That’s why it’s so exciting to see the formation of the Wind Solar Alliance (formerly the Wind Energy Foundation) to bring together the heavy hitters from both industries to work on mutually beneficial policy fights.

Having led national wind-solar advocacy campaigns for several years through its “A Renewable America” program, WSA saw an opportunity for increased collaboration between the two sectors, compelling the re-brand.

“There are many areas where the wind and solar agendas align,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). “We’ve seen great benefits from working with the wind advocates on federal, regional, and state policies on the “A Renewable America” campaign, and in other areas, over the past several years. We hope to continue to expand these meaningful efforts going forward, with support from the philanthropic community.”

[wds id=”3″]

“Accelerating the deployment of wind and solar technologies is one of the fastest ways to mitigate climate change while strengthening the U.S. economy,” said John Kostyack, executive director of the Wind Solar Alliance. “The new name reflects our view that wind and solar industry leaders and other energy experts are stronger working together on this shared agenda than apart. Our coalition effort is now well-positioned to reform the U.S. electricity markets, as well as transmission and utility procurement planning processes, and thereby to rapidly scale these two technologies.”

Dan Shugar, NEXTracker founder and CEO, and Colin Meehan, First Solar’s Director of Regulatory and Public Affairs, join leaders from other solar-only, wind-solar, and wind-only companies on the WSA board. The American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) CEO, Tom Kiernan, also sits on the WSA board. Mark Alhstrom, President of the Energy Systems Integration Group and one of the nation’s leading experts on integrating renewable energy onto the electricity grid, serves as a board advisor.

The Wind Solar Alliance will continue to focus on research, communication, and advocacy to raise awareness of the benefits of renewable energy. In addition, the organization will give increased attention to addressing the need for policy changes in the Independent System Operators, Public Utility Commissions, and other venues that determine whether renewables will be given a fair opportunity to compete in the electricity marketplace.

WSA’s education and advocacy campaigns (the Grid Campaign, the Renewable Energy Jobs Tour, and Electric Nation: Powered by Wind) are supported with funds from major foundations, AWEA and SEIA, and leading wind and solar companies. The campaigns mobilize leaders from the wind and solar industries and other experts to deliver facts, data, and personalized messages to decision makers about how renewable energy is helping to improve our economy and environment.

SEIA, The Solar Foundataion Attack Permitting Costs Head On

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

With cost being wrung out at every level of the solar installation, whether it’s module, inverter and racking prices, installation labor and even operations-and-maintenance. Yet the stubborn issue of exorbitant soft costs continues to plague the industry and keep prices artificially high.

Numerous studies have been done to determine the best way to bring those costs down, but they still remain high – at least until the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and The Solar Foundation (TSF) decided to do something about them.

To that end, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and The Solar Foundation today are unveiling the Solar Automated Permit Processing (SolarAPP) initiative, which will streamline permitting and slash the cost of solar installations.

[wds id=”3″]

SEIA and TSF research suggest the permitting and inspection process costs approximately $1.00/watt – nearly $7,000 in direct and indirect costs – for a typical residential solar electricity system. In addition to reducing the expense of solar installations, SolarAPP improves the efficiency of going solar by creating a rules-based, automated permitting and inspection process.

“The goal is to make solar permitting more straightforward, and more routine, while at the same time maintaining the safety and reliability that U.S. solar projects are known for,” said SEIA’s president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper. “SolarAPP will cut unnecessary red tape, while saving Americans thousands of dollars. By making the process of going solar more efficient, both our companies and their customers win.”

The multi-tiered plan proposes the following reforms:

  • A safety and skills training and certification program that allows residential and small commercial solar and battery storage installers to attest that their projects are compliant with applicable codes, laws, and industry practices, thus eliminating the need for a traditional multi-step permitting process;
  • A simple, standardized online platform that will be provided to local governments at no cost, to “register” and automatically screen qualifying systems for local government authorities;
  • A list of established equipment standards and/or certified equipment for solar and storage projects installed through the proposed process;
  • The creation, or refinement, of system design standards for qualifying solar projects;
  • A model instantaneous permitting regime for home and small-commercial solar and battery storage systems installed by certified installers and contractors;
  • A program administrator to oversee and implement the plan, including providing technical assistance to state and local jurisdictions and utilities.

“An automated solar permitting process will reduce unnecessary costs and give Americans more freedom to choose how they meet their energy needs.” said Andrea Luecke, president and executive director at The Solar Foundation. “With this plan, we have a clear path forward to make solar installations even more affordable and widespread.”

The solar industry is working with stakeholders across the industry and government, seeking feedback on SolarAPP.

“Reforming the solar and battery permitting process is one of the most significant steps our country can take to making solar more affordable for all,” said Lynn Jurich, CEO of Sunrun. “There is a patchwork of inconsistent permitting procedures and standards across the U.S. and our customers pay the high costs of navigating this system. We have an opportunity to help the industry invest in a million more solar roofs over the next 5 years from the savings by making the permitting process faster, while ensuring safety and reliability for all.”

More:

Instant Solar Permitting, The Most Important Issue Facing Solar? (Podcast With Andrew Birch)

Why Solar Permitting Matters And What You Can Do To Help: A Discussion With SEIA’s Abigail Ross Hopper (Q&A)