SunPower has secured a US$220 million loan from Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofAMerrill) to support its next wave of residential solar lease projects in the US.
This is the first time BofAMerrill has supported SunPower’s residential lease business, although the companies have worked together since 2009, on financing large solar projects for public agencies in California.
BofA Merrill noted that it had in place a 10-year, US$50 billion environmental business plan to help address climate change.
Todd Karas, head of renewable energy finance at BofA Merrill said: “With this investment in residential solar systems, we are expanding our portfolio of solar installations with SunPower beyond commercial and government entities to now include installations in individual homes. This is consistent with our firm's overall 10-year, US$50 billion environmental business initiative to help address climate change, reduce demands on natural resources and advance lower-carbon economic solutions.”
According to Chuck Boynton, CFO at SunPower, the company had more than 20,000 customers signed to its lease program in the US.
