Aurora Solar, a US-based company that has developed software to enable the remote design and sale of PV systems, has closed a US$250 million series C funding round.
Led by technology investment platform Coatue, with follow-on participation from existing investors ICONIQ Capital, Energize Ventures and Fifth Wall, the round takes the total raised by Aurora in the last two years to more than US$320 million.
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As well as helping solar professionals to determine how many modules will fit on a property, Aurora said its software can be used to forecast how much energy a PV system will produce, to calculate how many batteries are needed for backup power and to show how much money customers can save by switching to solar.
Aurora will use the latest investment to grow its product roadmap, expand sales and customer support, and build its leadership team to help scale the company.
“Our mission is to create a future of solar energy for all. The only way to reach that goal is to make it easy for solar professionals to design and sell solar remotely, and to make it affordable for consumers to understand and access the benefits of solar,” said Sam Adeyemo, co-founder and CRO of Aurora Solar.
The US posted a 11% year-on-year increase in residential solar installs in 2020, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association and analyst firm Wood Mackenzie, with around 3.1GW deployed, as companies adopted virtual sales techniques and online permitting processes. Cheaper prices and new financial products are expected to further increase rooftop solar deployment in the coming years.
“Residential solar is set to grow significantly over the next decade,” said Jaimin Rangwalla, senior managing director at Coatue. “Aurora has the potential to unlock an inflection in this growth through lowering soft costs, such as installation and permitting.”