SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--kWh Analytics, the market leader in solar risk management, announced today that it has structured its Solar Revenue Put credit enhancement on over $250 million of solar assets. Rapid adoption of the Solar Revenue Put is improving the economics of solar power and accelerating the growth of the solar industry.
“The history of the solar industry is one of relentless innovation,” said Ed Feo, President of Coronal Energy. “kWh Analytics developed a novel solution that we are proud to have deployed. The Solar Revenue Put is moving the market by driving down the industry’s cost of capital.”
The Solar Revenue Put has emerged as a powerful tool that enables acquisitive solar investors to win more competitive bids by reducing their cost of capital. The Solar Revenue Put has been incorporated into a variety of project financings, ranging from thousands of residential rooftop power plants to centralized utility-scale solar farms. Both refinancing and “new build” financing have been supported by the Put.
“We provide creative renewable energy solutions,” said Richard Dovere, CEO of C2 Energy Capital. “Implementing the Solar Revenue Put in our project financings is not only consistent with our mission, but also helps us to win deals. The Put is quickly becoming an industry standard.”
“As a trusted energy partner delivering reliable and affordable solar PV projects on a stand-alone basis or paired with storage, and an active solar investor, AES Distributed Energy constantly seeks out new tools to support our competitive edge,” said Brian Cassutt, Chief Financial Officer at AES Distributed Energy. “The Solar Revenue Put is a strategic option for sponsors to enhance returns and presents a unique opportunity for lenders to differentiate themselves.”
According to a recent survey of the 50 most active solar lenders (the “Solar Lendscape”), more than 40% of these lenders are now underwriting the Solar Revenue Put as a credit enhancement. Project financings supported by the Put are securing approximately 10% more debt.
“Nomura worked with kWh Analytics on a new build solar farm to come up with a unique solution to meet the owner’s needs,” said Vinod Mukani, Managing Director at Nomura Securities. “The insurance allowed Nomura and the sponsor to create a floor on revenue reducing the risk of resource volatility, enhancing the investment value. The policy was put in place quickly and efficiently at an accretive price point.”
“Managing the cost of capital is a central challenge for every solar investor,” said Justin Fuller, SVP of Renewable Energy Finance at Celtic Bank. “We have successfully combined the strengths of the USDA loan guarantee with the Solar Revenue Put to create a best-in-class offering for project-level debt.”
Using its proprietary actuarial model and risk management software (“HelioStats”), kWh Analytics developed the Solar Revenue Put, a credit enhancement for solar investors, to drive down investment risk and encourage development of clean, low-cost solar energy. Solar Revenue Puts are now set to guarantee production of more than 3 TWh of solar electricity, enough electricity to power every home in America for a day.
“In the solar business, risk is cost,” said Richard Matsui, Founder and CEO of kWh Analytics. “With the Solar Revenue Put, industry-leading sponsors and banks are able to reduce the risk—and therefore the cost—of solar. Less risk, less cost, more solar.”
Learn More about us: kwhanalytics.com & kwhanalytics.com/SolarRevenuePut
About the Solar Revenue Put
The Solar Revenue Put is a credit enhancement that guarantees up to 95% of a solar project’s expected energy output. kWh Analytics’ wholly-owned brokerage subsidiary places the policy with risk capacity rated investment-grade by Standard and Poor’s. As an ‘all-risk’ policy, the Solar Revenue Put protects against shortfalls in irradiance, panel failure, inverter failure, snow, and other system design flaws. The Solar Revenue Put provides comprehensive coverage that banks rely upon, enabling financial institutions to more easily finance solar projects on terms more favorable to the sponsor.
About kWh Analytics
kWh Analytics is the market leader in solar risk management. By leveraging the most comprehensive performance database of solar projects in the United States (20% of the U.S. market) and the strength of the global insurance markets, kWh Analytics’ customers are able to minimize risk and increase equity returns of their projects or portfolios. kWh Analytics also provides HelioStats risk management software to leading project finance investors in the solar market. kWh Analytics is backed by Anthemis, a leading fintech venture capital firm, ENGIE New Ventures, the venture arm of France's largest energy company, and the US Department of Energy. For more information about kWh Analytics, please visit: www.kwhanalytics.com or follow us on Twitter @kwhanalytics.
