BayWa has sold solar and storage projects to Eni; OSS has commenced construction on Black Bear Solar Project for Lightsource bp; Sunnova starts repair services; Palmetto raises $375 million & Aspen $120 million; SolarJuice Technology to upgrade its Sacramento, California module manufacturing facility to 1.1 GW.
BayWa sells solar and storage assets to Eni: BayWa r.e. has completed the sale of 266 MW DC/200 MW AC Corazon I Solar Plant and 200 MW/400 MWh Guajillo Storage Project in the US to Eni New Energy US. While Corazon I facility has been operational since August 2021 in Rexas, Guajillo project is expected to come online before the end of 2023. The latter will use the same interconnection facilities as Corazon I. It is aimed at supporting the grid by storing excess energy generated.
Orbital lands EPC contract for 130 MW DC: Orbital Solar Services (OSS) and its joint venture (JV) partner Jingoli Power LLC has secured a solar EPC Contract for a 130 MW DC/100 MW AC solar farm in Alabama from Lightsource bp. Construction has formally begun for the Black Bear project. Contractors will deploy 350,000 solar panels on 800 acres of land for delivery in late 2022. According to Lightsource bp, the project on completion is scheduled to supply power to the Alabama Municipal Electric Authority (AMEA) under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA). OSS said it is the company’s 2nd contract from Lightsource bp.
Repair services started by Sunnova: Residential solar company from the US, Sunnova Energy International has started offering solar system troubleshoot, service and repair services for solar and battery systems, whether installed or not installed by the company. Through Sunnova Repair Services, the company will have its certified technicians repair solar systems for homeowners who do not have warranty coverage. Sunnova said the technicians are professionally certified to work on systems from various brands including Enphase, Generac, SolarEdge and Tesla.
Palmetto raises $375 million for residential solar: Clean energy marketplace Palmetto has raised $375 million in a Series C round led by Social Capital along with new and existing investors including ArcTern Ventures, Gaingels, Lerer Hippeau, and MacKinnon, Bennett & Co. (MKB). It plans to deploy the same to accelerate the adoption of residential solar and clean energy independence across the US. Its business model is based on 3rd party marketplaces and subscription based revenue models which, it says, helps to maintain substantially lower operating costs and pass the savings to homeowners. Palmetto has also welcomed Chamath Palihapitiya of Social Capital and Nirav Tolia of Nextdoor to join its board of directors.
Aspen raises $120 million: Distributed generation solar and storage platform Aspen Power Partners has raised $120 million in its latest financing round from investors including Ultra Capital, Redball Power and a global Swiss asset manager. The round included family offices and high net worth individuals too. Incubated at Energy Impact Partners, Aspen said it has entered into agreements to develop or acquire 48 community and distributed solar projects of over 200 MW capacity across California, Maine, Maryland, New York and Pennsylvania.
SolarJuice Upgrades Sacramento Module Facility: Renewable energy company SPI Energy announced that its solar manufacturing division, SolarJuice Technology, has signed agreements to upgrade its Sacramento, California module manufacturing facility to 1.1 GW by the second half of 2022. Chairman & CEO of SPI Energy Xiaofeng Denton Peng said, “We start the production of Made-in-California solar modules at the current capacity of 200 MW, and expect to expand the capacity from this new signed production line in Q3.” Adding, “The state-of-the-art solar module manufacturing facility, which combines California’s highly skilled workers with machine-to-machine connectivity, will feature a high degree of precision automation and continuous improvement for manufacturing PV modules.
