Q4 2022 saw a marked uptick in renewable energy investment in Australia, and a 17% total bump in year-on-year investment was recorded compared with 2021. Despite this, more is needed to reach the country’s Renewable Energy Targets according to the Australian Clean Energy Council.
US-based independent power producer Altus Power has reached financial close on 220MW of solar PV assets representing an investment of approximately US$293 million.
2022 saw the arrival of DAS Solar as one of the PV industry’s rising stars, the five-year-old company attracting strategic investment from, among others, China Merchants Venture Capital, Three Gorges Capital and Yongfu Shares.
Agrivoltaics developer Pristine Sun Corporation has secured US$250 million in financing to develop and expand its projects in California, Texas and Louisiana, as well as further afield across the continental US.
Investment in the global energy transition totaled US$1.1 trillion in 2022 according to analyst firm BloombergNEF, reaching parity with investment in fossil fuels for the first time ever.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is set to boost investment into US renewable energy deployment and manufacturing from US$64 billion in 2022 to US$114 billion by 2031, according to research from Wood Mackenzie, though a mismatch between solar deployment demand and domestic manufacturing capacity may see the sector’s domestic profile lag behind.
Renewable energy investor and asset manager NextEnergy Capital has launched its most recent international solar capital fund, NextPower V ESG (NPV ESG), with a target of US$1.5 billion in capital commitments and a ceiling of US$2 billion.
Spanish multinational electric utility company Iberdrola has partnered with Norges Bank Investment Management to invest in 1,265MW of new renewables capacity in Spain, with solar plants making up 80% of the portfolio.
Concerns have been raised that the US solar industry’s reputation could be impacted by underperforming assets if investors do not see their return profiles being realised several years down the line.
