SOLAR INVESTMENTS - FROM FUNDINGS TO PARTNERSHIPS & ACQUISITIONS: WEEK 28

Private UK Solar Fund raises ￡653 million to date; SEK 91 million for Midsummer; Covestro PPA in Spain; and more in TaiyangNews Solar Investments Newsletter.??

This is a weekly newsletter to keep you updated on the latest developments in solar investments, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, public offerings within the solar industry. These are select stories that have been published on our website.

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FUNDINGS

Private UK Solar Fund raises ￡653 million to date: Renewables company NextEnergy Capital says its NextPower UK ESG (NPUK ESG) solar and energy storage-focused fund has exceeded its fund-raising target of ￡500 million ($641 million) by 30% to a combined ￡653 million ($837 million) to date.??The additional capital has been contributed by LGPS CIV Limited, with other funders being LGPS Central Limited, Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, Merseyside Pension Fund, Brunel Pension Partnership, and Strathclyde Pension Fund. Some of the investors come from the Middle East and Japan.??For the complete story, click here.

Loan for Romanian plant: Israel-based energy developer company Shikun & Binui Energy has raised a €49 million loan from the European banking group from Austria, Raiffeisen Group for its 101 MW Romanian solar PV project. Located in North-West Romania, the Simleu Silvaniei Project will use the proceeds to sell generated electricity either on the wholesale market or enter into power purchase agreements (PPA) with electricity trading companies and suppliers. Having reached a financial close, the project is now under construction. CJR Renewables is the EPC company on the project. Shikun & Binui Energy is also developing a significant pipeline of 841 MW solar and 554 MW wind energy projects in Romania. ?

SEK 91 million for Midsummer: Swedish solar technology company Midsummer has received SEK 91 million as grant payment for the completion of its thin-film solar cell factory in Italy. This is the 2nd tranche of payment to Midsummer from the Italian investment authority Invitalia for its 50 MW thin-film solar cell factory in Bari, Italy, which is now ready to scale up production. The 2nd tranche has been disbursed following approved factory inspection at the end of April 2024. The initial payment of SEK 73 million was paid last year. It expects another SEK 20 million including from the Puglia region where the factory is located, and close to SEK 50 million linked to the R&D of the project. In total, Midsummer says it will receive approximately SEK 235 million in grants to start production at Europe’s ‘largest’ factory for thin-film solar cell production. It is also working on a much larger fab with 200 MW annual capacity in Sweden’s Flen region, which is backed by funds from the European Union (see Swedish Manufacturer Zeroes In On Solar PV Production Site). ??

Trina Solar abandons RMB 10.9B fundraising plans: Solar module manufacturer 天合光能 has announced that it has terminated its fundraising plans for projects worth RMB 10.9 billion ($1.50 billion). The company had adopted the share issuance route for this fundraising according to July 2023 announcement. Trina Solar had planned to use the proceeds to invest in 3 PV manufacturing facilities in Jiangsu Province. These were a 10 GW high-efficiency solar cell facility in Huai’an City, and a 10 GW cell + 10 GW module manufacturing facility in Dongtai City. The company said that this decision comes on the back of an assessment of its situation and changes in the capital market and related policies. Recently, Trina Solar said that it expects TOPCon to remain the mainstream mass-produced technology over the next 2 to 3 years (see China Solar PV News Snippets).

Recurrent Energy bags $103 million: Canadian Solar subsidiary Recurrent Energy has signed a tax credit facilitation agreement for $103 million with the Bank of America for its North Fork Solar Project. Recurrent says this tax equity agreement is its 1st Production Tax Credit (PTC) transaction and also the 1st tax credit transfer transaction. “By transferring tax credits to Bank of America, Recurrent Energy can access funding more quickly and efficiently,” explained the company. The Oklahoma City located 160 MW project became operational on June 26, 2024. Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority (OMPA) will offtake 100% of electricity produced by the solar farm, for 15 years. Recurrent will continue to own and operate the facility.???

$18.5 million for clean energy in the US: The US government’s Department of Energy (DOE) has announced $18.5 million funding for clean energy projects in 24 states and local governments. Funded under US President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this 7th tranche of funding is aimed at supporting energy efficiency improvements and upgrades, while bringing down GHG emissions. Recipient governments will use the funds to install solar panels on municipal facilities, and develop climate and energy plans, among other uses. The complete list of beneficiaries and their projects is available on the DOE’s website. ? ?

PPA

Covestro PPA in Spain: Polymer materials manufacturer @Covestro and bp have announced a new solar PPA for the latter’s Spanish solar power plant in Spain. The 10-year agreement is for a project of unidentified installed capacity in Teruel, in the Aragon region. Covestro said this agreement will enable its main production site in Tarragona to be powered by renewable energy. It will increase the company’s share of renewable energy in its total electricity consumption in Spain from less than 10% to approximately 30%. ? ?