D.E. Shaw Renewable Investments acquires 100MW PV project from First Solar

October 18, 2018
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The 100MW project is currently under construction and is expected to be completed by the end of 2018. Image: First Solar

D. E. Shaw Renewable Investments has signed off on an agreement to acquire the 100MW Willow Springs Solar Project in Kern County, California from First Solar.

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The 100MW plant, which was developed by First Solar, is currently under construction and is expected to be completed by the end of 2018. The site will provide power to Southern California Edison Company through a long-term PPA.

Bryan Martin, CEO of DESRI, said: “DESRI is thrilled to close on the acquisition of Willow Springs from First Solar. This project is a testament to the strong partnership that our firms have built over many years.  We are looking forward to using First Solar's leading Series 6 module technology to deliver clean energy to the Kern County community for years to come.”

Once completed, the project is expected to generate enough energy annually to power 41,000 typical California homes and displace more than 77,000 metric tons of CO2 greenhouse gas emissions each year.

Willow Springs is the fourth renewable energy project that DESRI has acquired from First Solar. In 2017 a DESRI affiliate acquired the 40MW Cuyama Solar Project in Santa Barbara County, while DESRI affiliates acquired the 31MM Portal Ridge Solar Project in Los Angeles County and the 11MW Rancho Seco Solar Project in Sacramento County in 2016.

16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2027 and beyond.

Read Next

October 29, 2025
NextEra Energy Resources added 3GW of new renewable energy generation and storage capacity to its portfolio in the third quarter of 2025.
October 29, 2025
US solar manufacturer Corning has brought online its wafer production at its Michigan plant, during the third quarter of 2025.
October 27, 2025
Engie has signed additional PPAs with Meta, expanding their partnership to more than 1.3GW across four solar projects in Texas.
October 27, 2025
Waaree Energies has secured four solar module supply contracts totalling 692MW – three for projects in India and one in the US through its subsidiary.
October 27, 2025
US solar technology company Swift Solar has deployed perovskite solar technology as part of a Department of Defence cyber warfare exercise in the state of Virginia.
October 23, 2025
US solar manufacturer T1 Energy sold approximately 725MW of solar modules in Q3 2025, as it continues to expand US manufacturing capabilities.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Webinars
November 12, 2025
10am PST / 1pm EST
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK
Solar Media Events
March 10, 2026
Frankfurt, Germany