SunEdison lines up tax financing for U.S. distributed solar projects

SunEdison, Inc. announced last week that is has closed a $160 million fund for distributed generation projects in the United States with Barclays and Citi. The lease pass-through fund represents a unique structure that will provide the tax equity for 40 U.S. projects. The portfolio includes a mix of ground-mounted, rooftop and canopy photovoltaic systems with an average size of 1.1 megawatts per project.

The fund's innovative financial structure is designed to enable efficiencies for the tax equity investor. The investment structure will allow SunEdison to accelerate the growth of its distributed generation portfolio for commercial and industrial customers, a segment where SunEdison enjoys a leading market share position in the United States.

"We are excited to complete this new fund with Citi and Barclays," said Ryan Bennett, vice president of project finance, North America at SunEdison. "SunEdison is pioneering new financing structures and cutting-edge solar offerings with top tier partners. This deal reflects the power of these strong relationships and our commitment to press deeper into new structures that will further enable our leadership in the U.S. distributed generation segment. We value and appreciate the relationships we have built with Citi and Barclays and look forward to continuing to grow with them."

Marshal Salant, managing director and global head of alternative energy with Citi, said:

"We are proud to support SunEdison and this innovative effort to fund distributed generation solar power projects throughout the United States. Citi is committed to environmental sustainability and to financing clean renewable energy. Through this fund we can provide access to renewable energy to more businesses and municipal entities."

Rama Subramaniam, managing director, Barclays, said:

"Barclays is pleased to support SunEdison on this ground-breaking fund and is excited about the role it will play in financing solar power projects across the country. Our participation in the fund underscores our position as a full-service provider to the alternative energy sector and, by advancing environmental sustainability, complements our global Citizenship agenda."