Solar developer Aspen Power secures US$350 million investment from Carlyle

November 4, 2022
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Aspen has acquired New York-based solar developer Safari Energy. Image: Aspen Power Partners.

Aspen Power Partners, a US distributed generation developer, has received a US$350 million investment from global investment firm Carlyle. It said that the funds will be used to fuel its growth and acquisitions strategy.

As part of this acquisition-based growth strategy, targeting the community, multifamily and commercial and industrial (C&I) solar and storage markets, Aspen has acquired New York-based solar developer Safari Energy from PPL Corporation. This transaction represents one of the largest solar C&I transitions in the US to date, Carlyle said.

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

Safari Energy has acquired or developed over 600 C&I solar projects across the US since its foundation in 2008, spanning 24 states and Washington DC. Carlyle said that Safari’s projects have developed over 893MWh of electricity. Aspen has acquired all of Safari’s assets and development platform, including 220MW of operating and under-construction distributed generation solar assets.

Aspen said that following the investment from Carlyle and the Safari acquisition it’s on track to achieve a gigawatt of capacity by mid-decade. “During this critical climate decade, as demand for solar, storage, and electric vehicle charging continues to expand, the Carlyle investment and Safari transaction provide a clear path forward for our team to execute a step-change in the scale of our impact,” said Jackson Lehr, Aspen co-founder and CFO. 

Pooja Goyal, chief investment officer of Carlyle’s infrastructure group, said: “At Carlyle, we believe investing in renewables includes investing across the value chain. This includes investing in not only large utility-scale renewable energy assets, but also community solar and distributed generation more broadly.”

Aspen’s US$120 million fundraise was one of the five largest VC-funded deals of Q1 this year, though total corporate funding of solar fell in the US in the first half of 2022, as reported in PV Tech.

Carlyle invested US$374 million in Canadian renewables developer Amp Energy last year.

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

October 27, 2025
Australian solar developer, BNRG Leeson, has submitted plans for a 440MW solar PV facility in Victoria's Campaspe Shire to Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.
October 24, 2025
The Saudi state-owned renewables developer Masdar has begun construction on a giant solar-plus-storage project in Abu Dhabi.
October 23, 2025
US solar manufacturer T1 Energy sold approximately 725MW of solar modules in Q3 2025, as it continues to expand US manufacturing capabilities.
October 23, 2025
Aviva Investors and Astatine have announced an €800 million (US$928 million) investment in renewable energy and decarbonisation solutions.
October 23, 2025
Spanish power electronics specialist Ingeteam has won a contract to supply inverters and control systems for European Energy Australia's 100MW Winton North solar-plus-storage project in northeast Victoria.
October 23, 2025
Powerlink Queensland is seeking federal approval to expand its existing 330kV Bulli Creek Substation in Southern Queensland to accommodate the grid connection of Genex Power's 775MW Bulli Creek solar PV power plant.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK
Solar Media Events
March 10, 2026
Frankfurt, Germany
Solar Media Events
March 24, 2026
Lisbon, Portugal