8minute takes US pipeline to 18GW, boasts new investment

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Image: 8minute.

8minute Solar Energy has bolted a further 3GW of large-scale solar projects onto its pipeline, taking the developer’s tally to more than 18GW.

8minute also confirmed that it had sourced additional corporate-level funding to develop that pipeline further, noting that it would also help advanced the firm’s so-called “new generation” project design that incorporates battery storage.

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

Tom Buttgenbach, president and CEO at 8minute, said the company had spent recent months adding to the “bench strength” of its team, recruiting developers, engineers and technology innovators in a bid to improve the cost-competitiveness of its solar projects.

This has resulted in growth of its project pipeline through its key markets of California, Texas and the US Southwest.

New development capital has been raised from its JV partners including JP Morgan Asset Management and Upper Bay Infrastructure Partners, while the University of California (UC) Office of the Chief Investment Officer of the Regents – the body responsible for management UC’s investment funds – recently joined 8minute’s stable as a “significant investor”.

That investment, 8minute said, would help “accelerate the execution” of its pipeline across California and the Southwestern United States.

While no specific details of projects were forthcoming, 8minute did stress that it was keen to replicate the model spearheaded by its Eland Solar & Storage Center in Kern County, California. Having received approval for the project last year, 8minute will combine 400MWac of solar with 300MW/1,200MWh of energy storage, providing dispatchable power at a price of under US$0.04c/kWh, the company claimed.

8minute sold the Eland project to asset manager Capital Dynamics earlier this year, however it remains an equity partner in it and has remained as its developer.

Buttgenbach said the firm would continue to collaborate with local communities across its pipeline, adding: “This strategic investment with our joint venture partners is an important part of this vision that extends beyond the funding—it’s an opportunity to align with world-class research labs and technology centers at the forefront of energy innovation.”

7 October 2025
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
PV Tech has been running an annual PV CellTech Conference since 2016. PV CellTech USA, on 7-8 October 2025 is our third PV CellTech conference dedicated to the U.S. manufacturing sector. The events in 2023 and 2024 were a sell out success and 2025 will once again gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing in the U.S. out to 2030 and beyond.
21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.
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

September 3, 2025
Developers Alight Neoen have commissioned the 100MWp Hultsfred Solar Farm in Småland, southern Sweden.
September 3, 2025
US residential solar prices have remained at historic lows in the first half of the year despite market uncertainty and continued high interest rates.
September 3, 2025
India has added 2.8GW of rooftop solar in H1 2025, a 158% year-on-year surge from just 1.1GW in the same period last year.
September 3, 2025
Singapore-headquartered independent power producer Peak Energy has broken ground on a 65MWp solar project in Isabela, in the Cagayan Valley region of northeast Luzon, Philippines. 
September 2, 2025
Q Energy has reached financial close for Taurus B, a portfolio of seven solar PV plants in Spain with a combined capacity of 251.71MWp.
September 2, 2025
The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) will build a pilot solar cell line in Germany to support US manufacturer Talon PV’s efforts to establish solar cell capacity in the US.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece
Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK
Solar Media Events
October 7, 2025
Manila, Philippines