Solar financier SunRun pulls in money
SunRun, a company that offers solar-electricity financing, announced Tuesday that it has raised $12 million from Foundation Capital.
The San Francisco-based start-up is one of handful of new companies looking to make solar panels an easier purchase for consumers through financing.
Solar electric panels have a hefty up-front cost--between $20,000 and $35,000-- depending on the size, before rebates.
Although buyers will generally recoup the initial outlay in lower electricity bills in about 15 years, the high cost has restricted solar electricity to a niche audience, say solar industry executives.
Rather than buy the panels, SunRun customers buy the electricity the panels generate. This model, called a power purchase agreement (PPA), is commonly used in large corporate renewable energy installations.
Customers pay a "minimal" up-front fee and then lock into an electricity rate that is lower than the retail utility rate. The arrangement makes most sense in places where there are high electricity rates and relatively good incentives, like California.
SunRun owns the panels and provides maintenance. The company benefits from solar rebate incentives, which help finance the contracts.
Meanwhile, as these solar financing options take hold, the cost of solar panels is dropping regularly.
Experts forecast the cost of electricity from home solar panels will be the same as retail electricity rates--called grid parity--in many places in the U.S. within three to five years.
Martin LaMonica is a senior writer for CNET's Green Tech blog. He started at CNET News in 2002, covering IT and Web development. Before that, he was executive editor at IT publication InfoWorld. E-mail Martin.
- Topics:
-
Solar,
-
Deals and investments
- Tags:
-
solar,
-
financing,
-
power purchase agreements
- Share:
- Digg
- Del.icio.us
The costs estimated in this article a about 100% more what I've been seeing lately, I've been looking into purchasing an on/off grid and power back the grid system.
Thanks for your information about this company.
================
rose786
Florida Drug Rehab
Florida Drug Rehab
JT
http://www.iurlz.com/demtools