Basalt and Soltage invest US$14 M in US solar partnership
Soltage and Basalt Infrastructure Partners have completed the first close of US$70 million on a US$140 million equity capital partnership to fund over 100 MW of commercial and industrial (C&I) and utility-scale pipeline of solar projects across the United States.
The partnership expects to close the additional $70 million of equity in the first half of 2017, and the partnership will deploy this capital alongside existing tax equity and debt resources. Marathon Capital acted as exclusive financial advisor to Soltage in arranging the capital commitment from Basalt.
The partnership also announced commencement of construction on the first generation assets for this vehicle, three landfill-sited projects totaling 15 MW installed capacity. The partnership will own and Soltage will operate the projects, selling power to municipal off-takers in Massachusetts under virtual net metering agreements. The assets are expected to begin commercial operation in early 2017.
Marathon Capital's extensive experience in the C&I and utility scale solar sector served to identify specific investors with the right capabilities and alignment with Soltage to fund its growing project pipeline.
Terry Grant, Marathon Capital Managing Director, commneted:
"We are very pleased to have brought two excellent teams together and are extremely optimistic about the future prospects of the partnership."
Jesse Grossman, Soltage co-founder and CEO, stated:
"Corporate and state-level renewable energy targets, falling solar project costs, and stable federal support make distributed solar America's fastest-growing generation source and an increasingly intelligent area of engagement for utilities, consumers, and investors. As Soltage celebrates ten years in business, this investment is a significant step into a second decade of success."
Rob Gregor, Basalt Managing Partner, said:
"Basalt's investment strategy includes accessing attractive infrastructure markets by partnering with best in class developers. We were attracted by Soltage's experience in the C&I sector, including its history of developing projects on time and on budget together with outstanding ongoing asset management capabilities. We are particularly excited as the U.S. C&I, educational, utility, and municipal solar markets are growing rapidly and our partnership with Soltage expands upon Basalt's existing involvement with solar energy through McEwan Power in the United Kingdom."
