Vivint Solar closes US$313 million term loan facility
4 August: US residential PV installer Vivint Solar has closed a US$313 million term loan facility.
The facility refinanced 11 tax equity funds that were part of the company's aggregation facility. It also provides back-leverage financing for a portfolio of 12 tax equity funds that own more than 307MW and 47,000 residential solar energy systems in 12 states.
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
The transaction was arranged by Investec Bank, ING Capital, Silicon Valley Bank and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey as joint bookrunners.
Thomas Plagemann, executive vice president and head of capital markets at Vivint Solar, said: “This new financing has a five-year term, which is expected to exceed the projected flip dates for many of the 12 tax equity funds, and it enables us to continue our mission of making solar affordable for homeowners.”
In May Vivint also closed a tax equity investment fund of US$75 million with an unnamed new investor, which will enable the company to design, procure and install more than 45MW of residential solar systems.
Mosaic secures US$220 million equity financing
4 August: Mosaic, a former crowdfunding start-up turned major provider of residential solar financing, has secured equity financing of up to $220 million led by private equity firm Warburg Pincus.
Core Innovation Capital and Obvious Ventures also participated in the round. Mosaic will use the financing to continue its growth in the rooftop solar loan market.
Mosaic provides financing to homeowners to purchase rooftop solar systems and has a network of more than 250 solar companies that offer its financing products, representing more than 85% of the residential solar market in the US, the company claims.
“Securing this investment from Warburg Pincus, one of the world's leading private equity firms, is a major validation for Mosaic and provides an open runway for growth,” said Billy Parish, founder and chief executive at Mosaic.
In April Mosaic also secured US$200 million in funding that will support at least 5,000 rooftop PV installations.
GameChange Solar receives 28MW tracker order
3 August: Tracker firm GameChange Solar has received an order for a 28MW tracker system to be installed in the Northwestern US in the final quarter of this year.
The system uses First Solar Series 4 modules and is being built by a leading installer, according to a company release.
Teresa Zhao, director of business development at GameChange Solar, said: “The northwest is a growing market for single axis trackers. We are seeing more interest in this area for the Genius Tracker due to its attractive pricing, reliability, quality and easy installation.”
GameChange Solar recently announced that three EPC companies had ordered over 158MW of pile driven fixed tilt racking systems from GameChange for immediate production.
