SunEdison, one of the largest solar technology manufacturers in North America, is finally breaking into UK territory. The company announced on Wednesday that it had closed a non-recourse debt financing agreement with Deutsche Bank, with the proceeds of the deal being used to finance four PV projects in the UK.
The four projects, which are currently being built in Wiltshire, North Devon and on the Essex/Suffolk border, are expected to be operational by the end of March 2014.
Jose Perez, SunEdison’s president of Europe, Middle East, Africa (EMEA) and Latin America, said: “We are entering the UK solar market with a project portfolio while expanding our relationship with Deutsche Bank, this demonstrates our ability to utilise existing relationships to enter new markets and facilitate the expansion of our utility business without impacting our balance sheet. We view the United Kingdom as a high-growth market for solar and for our company, we are looking forward to supporting economic growth for the United Kingdom through solar projects that create jobs and support the local economy while delivering predictably priced energy.”
Once the four projects are completed, they will be managed by the SunEdison Renewable Operation Centre (ROC), which will both monitor and report on the performance of the solar power plants.
The energy gained from the projects will be acquired by SmartestEnergy, the UK’s leading purchaser of electricity produced by the independent sector through a power purchase agreement (PPA). The deal will guarantee SmartestEnergy years of dependable electricity.
SunEdison also announced that Foresight Solar Fund Limited, an investment company managed by Foresight Group, will obtain the portfolio of projects once interconnected through a share purchase agreement (SPA).
One of the UK’s leading investors in renewable energy, Foresight currently oversees over £650 million (US$1.08 billion) in 23 separate PV projects in the UK, the USA, Spain and Italy.