Clearway Completes Financing on its Sixth Community Solar Fund
66 MWdc of Community Solar to be Constructed in New York, Massachusetts, and Illinois
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Clearway Energy Group (“Clearway”) announced today that it closed more than $180 million of debt financing for its Community Solar Fund 6 – a diversified portfolio of 19 projects totaling 66 MWdc that will serve commercial and industrial customers and around 5,000 residential customers across Illinois, Massachusetts and New York. For the debt financing, CIT acted as Coordinating Lead Arranger and Sole Bookrunner, while KeyBank Capital Markets and Silicon Valley Bank served as Joint Lead Arrangers for construction and term debt financing, with City National Bank as an additional lender. Clearway also secured tax equity financing for this community solar portfolio with an undisclosed party.
“Community solar is one of the most promising sectors of the industry because it gives families and businesses the option to choose renewable energy while saving money on their utility bills,” said Steve Ryder, Chief Financial Officer at Clearway Energy Group. “We are excited to bring together our expertise in project origination, power marketing and customer management to provide a community solar solution in states with clean-energy policies that promote this option for its citizens and businesses.”
“We appreciate the support of our financing parties in achieving this milestone in our community solar business”, said Natalie Jackson, Head of Capital Markets at Clearway Energy Group. “With this new fund, Clearway and its partners have driven innovation in developing community solar with storage, customizing funding structures, and expanding access to solar energy.”
Community solar offers financing partners participation in diverse, long-dated cash flows from residential, commercial, and municipal customers in addition to state-backed incentives, and the ability to efficiently replace non-paying customers – all with the low-risk operating performance of a utility-scale project.
For subscribers, community solar offers access to local clean energy without the need to put equipment on their roof or property, as well as savings on their electricity costs with no upfront cost.
Today’s news follows a series of community solar milestones in recent months. In May, Clearway announced its partnership with Northwestern University, its first major commercial subscriber in Illinois. The company completed commissioning on community solar projects paired with storage in Massachusetts, which were among the first of many such projects in the state. Clearway also announced earlier this year that it closed its Community Solar 5 Fund.
Clearway Community Solar is unique in that it is a fully integrated business that combines the three essential components to be successful long-term: project origination, power marketing, and customer management. As a result, and taken together with prior funds, Clearway has become a market leader in community solar with approximately 400 MWdc of projects nationwide serving more than 15,000 customers, in addition to its leading utility-scale solar and wind business.