Musk and the Rives buy US$100 million of SolarCity bonds

By John Parnell

August 24, 2016

Companies, Markets & Finance, People

Latest

PNM seeks approval for 240MW solar and 610MW storage in New Mexico resource plan

News

Avaada secures US$950 million financing for FDRE and solar PV projects in India

News

Svea Solar Utility raises €185 million to develop 220MW Swedish solar-plus-storage pipeline

News

Vesper Energy bags US$236 million for 201MW Texas PV plant

News

EDP to spend €1.3 billion on renewables in France

News

Maxwell Power secures US$750 million for solar-plus-storage projects

News

How Virto.MAX shapes the future of solar with conceptual PV design

Features, Guest Blog, Product Reviews

Australia’s New South Wales commits AU$225 million to low-carbon and renewables manufacturing

News

Nextpower sues GameChange over IP breach as GameChange announces rebranding

News

SEG Solar to build third module manufacturing facility in the US, bringing manufacturing capacity up to 10.6GW

News

Elon Musk and his SolarCity executive cousins have purchased US$100 million of the company’s latest bond issue.

SEC filings show that Musk personally purchased US$65 million worth, while CEO Lyndon Rive and CTO Peter Rive purchased US$17.5 million worth each. The US$124 million solar bond issue was launched on the 17 August. The company also announced that the Rive's would waive their salaries as a round of job cuts approached.

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

Get Premium Subscription

Or continue reading this article for free

Get Basic (FREE) Subscription

Musk has previously purchased SolarCity bonds via his SpaceX company.

The move further entwines Musk, already SolarCity’s largest shareholder, with SolarCity ahead of a proposed all-stock acquisition by Tesla.

UPCOMING EVENT

PV ModuleTech USA 2026

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 2028 and beyond.

UPCOMING EVENT

PV CellTech USA 2026

13 October 2026

San Francisco Bay Area, USA

PV Tech has been running an annual PV CellTech Conference since 2016. PV CellTech USA, on 13-14 October 2026 is our fourth PV CellTech conference dedicated to solar manufacturing in the USA. From polysilicon, wafers, ingots, cells and modules, to critical component suppliers including glass and frames, the event connects every stage of the value chain under one roof. PV CellTech USA also brings together investors, innovators, manufacturers and industry stakeholders to collaborate and strengthen domestic solar manufacturing across the United States.

elon musk, investment, solar bonds, solarcity, tesla, us, usa

Read Next

PNM seeks approval for 240MW solar and 610MW storage in New Mexico resource plan

June 2, 2026

PNM has filed a resource plan with the NMPRC seeking approval for 1.69GW of new generation and energy storage capacity.

Vesper Energy bags US$236 million for 201MW Texas PV plant

June 2, 2026

US independent power producer (IPP) Vesper Energy has secured US$236 million in debt financing to back a 201MW solar PV project in Texas.

EDP to spend €1.3 billion on renewables in France

June 2, 2026

Portuguese energy utility EDP will spend €1.3 billion in France to build 1GW of solar, wind and energy storage assets over the next four years.

Maxwell Power secures US$750 million for solar-plus-storage projects

June 2, 2026

Maxwell Power has secured a US$750 million investment commitment from Fairtide Partners to finance battery storage and solar projects across its development pipeline.

Australia’s New South Wales commits AU$225 million to low-carbon and renewables manufacturing

June 2, 2026

NSW will provide AU$225 million in new funding to support domestic manufacturing of low-carbon products and renewable energy components.

Nextpower sues GameChange over IP breach as GameChange announces rebranding

June 1, 2026

Nextpower has filed a patent lawsuit against GameChange Energy on the same day GameChange announced a consolidation of its activities.

Most Read

Nextpower sues GameChange over IP breach as GameChange announces rebranding

News

Australia’s Victoria formally declares five renewable energy zones

News

Australia’s New South Wales commits AU$225 million to low-carbon and renewables manufacturing

News

EDF signs Utah solar PPA with LA Department of Water and Power

News

SEG Solar to build third module manufacturing facility in the US, bringing manufacturing capacity up to 10.6GW

News

‘I still have hope that the failure rate will decrease,’ says Kiwa PVEL’s Tristan Erion-Lorico

Features, Interviews, Long Reads

Upcoming Events

RE+ South Africa

Media Partners, Solar Media Events

June 2, 2026

Johannesburg, South Africa

SNEC PV POWER & ES EXPO 2026

Media Partners, Solar Media Events

June 3, 2026

National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai)

PV ModuleTech USA 2026

Solar Media Events

June 16, 2026

Napa, USA

RE+ Storage

Media Partners, Solar Media Events

June 30, 2026

Sacramento, California

The smarter E South America – LATAM’s Largest Alliance of Events for the Energy Industry

Media Partners, Solar Media Events

August 25, 2026

São Paulo, Brazil