PV tracker manufacturer Nextracker has acquired US-based solar PV foundations supplier Solar Pile International (SPI) for US$48 million.
The acquisition was unveiled during Nextracker’s financial results for the period covering April to June 2024 (Q1 FY25 for the company). This is the second acquisition in just over a month for the tracker manufacturer, which expanded its solar foundation business in June when it acquired US-based solar foundation company Ojjo for US$120 million.
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Dan Shugar, founder and CEO at Nextracker, said: “We believe there is value to our customers in combining tracker systems and foundations to form an integrated solution. With these two acquisitions, we can provide a holistic integrated solution for a broad range of soil conditions for utility-scale projects globally.”
While Ojjo’s application works best in more complicated soil and shallow bedrock, SPI’s, on the other hand, caters best to softer and more expansive soil conditions, as well as sites that experience frost heave. The acquisition includes fixed assets, intellectual property and other intangible assets.
Alongside these two recent acquisitions, Nextracker has also added new manufacturing capacity in the US, with a second tracker manufacturing line in Nevada and increasing its manufacturing capacity in Pennsylvania to 4GW. In recent years the company has either opened or expanded its manufacturing footprint in the US, with more than 20 manufacturing facilities with an annual nameplate capacity of over 30GW. Nextracker’s global manufacturing capacity currently sits at over 50GW.
As the company’s domestic manufacturing capacity continues to increase, it expects to fulfil orders with a 100% US domestic content capability in early 2025.
Six consecutive quarter with double-digit revenue growth
For a sixth consecutive quarter, Nextracker registered a double-digit revenue growth with US$720 million in Q2 2024 (Q1 FY25 for Nextracker). This represents a 50% increase from the same period in 2023 when its revenue reached US$480 million.
For the third quarter in a row, the company had revenues higher than US$700 million, while it continued to increase its spending in research and development (R&D) to US$16.5 million in Q2 2024.
Regarding R&D, the company said in its letter to shareholders: “We continue to view investments in R&D and sales and marketing as strategic and will prioritise as such in order to grow and scale our business, and fund innovation initiatives.”
During the second quarter of 2024, Nextracker launched a new version of its NX Horizon series of solar tracker systems, with up to 35% reduced carbon footprint.
Moreover, adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) more than doubled year-over-year to a quarterly record of US$175 million in the period between 1 April and 30 June 2024. This includes US$47 million of 45X benefits from the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The US continues to be the company’s main revenue source, with over two thirds of the total share market and representing US$511 million in Q2 2024. This compares to US$208 million for the rest of the world, as shown in the chart below.
Nextracker reaffirmed its outlook for the fiscal year 2025, targeting revenue between US$2.8-2.9 billion and an adjusted EBITDA ranging from US$600-650 million.
Earning calls comments from Seeking Alpha.
