GOOGLE BACKS LEASED SUN

Google invests $280 million in rooftop solar fund for SolarCity
Dana Hall, June 14, 2011 (San Jose Mercury News)

"…[A] $280 million fund financed by Google…will allow SolarCity to install solar panels on thousands of homes across the country…Google, which has about $30 billion in cash on its balance sheet, has been aggressively investing in clean-energy projects, primarily in solar and wind, that earn a return on its investment and help grow the nation's cleantech economy…The new fund, Google's largest cleantech investment to date, will raise the total sum it has invested in clean-energy projects to $680 million -- and the company says there's more to come…

"Advocates of renewable power have long argued that California needs both large, utility-scale solar power plants and smaller rooftop installations known in the industry as ‘distributed generation.’ In April, Google made a $168 million equity investment in BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah project, a solar thermal power plant under construction in California's Mojave Desert. The $280 million fund with SolarCity shows Google's support for both approaches."

click to enlarge

[Rick Needham, director of green business operations and strategy, Google:] "This is our first distributed generation investment, and it allows SolarCity to grow their business model for residential customers…What we like about the distributed model is that it is generation at the point of use, and it allows residential customers to both shift to clean energy while reducing their overall energy bill."

click to enlarge

"Google's energy investments and projects are spread across different parts of the company. While Google has invested $680 million on clean energy to date, the company's philanthropic arm, Google.org, invested about $45 million in early-stage clean-energy companies in 2007 and 2008. Google Ventures, the company's venture arm, now plays the role of investing in early stage companies…Google invests in larger companies and has largely focused on solar power plants and wind farms, with plans to add geothermal to the portfolio…

"Since it began operations in July 2006, SolarCity has made a name for itself by being the first company in the solar industry to provide homeowners a lease option -- or solar for no money down. Instead of footing the bill for a solar system all at once, customers pay as they go, with the monthly lease payment to SolarCity offset by lower electric bills. The company has nearly 1,200 employees nationwide and serves customers in 10 states…The new fund creates a huge bank account for SolarCity to draw on, and is intended to give Google a return on its investment…"