Major tier-one PV manufacturer ReneSola has formed a joint venture firm with US project developer and EPC, Pristine Sun.
Initially, through a newly formed company, Baynergy LLC, the new partners are targeting to build, hold and operate 150MW of projects that would be operational by the end of 2016.
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ReneSola said it would hold a majority equity interest in the joint venture while Pristine Sun has options to increase its holding to up to 49%. Plans after the possible ITC reduction include a further 150MW of projects.
Xianshou Li, chief executive officer of ReneSola said: “The US market is full of tremendous opportunities in the downstream project sector with 25GW projected to be constructed in the commercial and utility space in the next five years.
According to Pristine Sun’s website, it has over 150 projects that total almost 1GW in various stages of construction or late-stage development. The company also claims to have more than 500 projects totalling around 5GW in early or mid-stage development within the US.
Troy Helming, chief executive officer of Pristine Sun added: “Our partnership with ReneSola to develop solar PV projects in the US continues our tradition of working with leading industry players to develop, build and operate a deep pipeline of quality renewable energy projects.”
ReneSola has been shifting its business model away from OEM production supply to bundled services as well as shifting its module sales to higher margin markets and away from the US and China with greater focus on its own downstream project business.
Module shipments to the US only accounted for 3.3% of total shipments in the first quarter of 2015, down from 13.6% in the prior year period.
However, ReneSola previously said that it was actively exploring PV power plant project opportunities in several ‘developed markets’ and expected to provide a detailed project pipeline analysis later this year.
