Vivint Solar Continues Huge Month With Expansion Into Vermont

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It’s been a huge month for Vivint Solar, one of the United States’ leading residential solar providers, and it continues the upward momentum this week, announcing that it will be expanding its services into Vermont.

In May, Vivint Solar announced a somewhat surprising quarterly profit on its first quarter, taking analysts and investors a little by surprise. The company has been struggling for a little over a year now, with fluctuating financial results amidst a global solar slowdown due to price decreases. Many solar companies, both manufacturers and developers, have been struggling to match the same level of profit they were accustomed to, and Vivint Solar was no different.

Nevertheless, with a strong first quarter behind it, it seems Vivint Solar has put the pedal to the metal. In June alone the company has announced several important and promising moves. First, Vivint announced that it had secured $100 million in new tax equity commitments from two repeat investors which will go towards funding the development of 70 megawatts (MW) of residential solar. Vivint relies on continued investments such as this to provide residential customers with the opportunity to lease or take loans off an existing installation (paid for by Vivint). Search through the archives of Vivint Solar news, and you’ll find that the company, despite its troubles, has regularly managed to secure financing.

Following this, Vivint Solar announced that not only was it expanding its services into Colorado — the country’s 11th state for solar installations — but Vivint revealed that it would be returning to Nevada, after a two-year absence. The return was presaged by news that the Nevada Legislature’s had passed Assembly Bill 405 — which allows Nevadan residents to be reimbursed for excess rooftop solar generation, and provides additional rights to project consumers and their solar energy system investments — and a commitment from Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval that he will sign the bill into law.

“We are very pleased Nevada officials have recognized the broad public support of rooftop solar and reestablished the state’s commitment to the future of renewable energy,” said David Bywater, CEO of Vivint Solar. “This bill demonstrates the power of building consensus across stakeholders to find a win-win-win solution for the residential solar industry, utilities and Nevada consumers. We look forward to bringing jobs, consumer choice and affordable solar power back to the state of Nevada.”

It seems, however, that Vivint Solar wasn’t content with that, and just as we hit the halfway mark of June the company announced that it would be expanding its services into Vermont. Vermont — which ranks second on the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Clean Energy Momentum State Ranking (which is to say, it’s doing very well), and which leads the United States in clean energy jobs per capita and for its carbon reduction target — has committed  to attaining 90% of its energy from renewable energy sources by 2050, giving Vivint Solar a nice stepping stone from which to launch into the state.

“We applaud Vermont for providing a consistent regulatory environment to help spur renewable growth in this tremendous state,” said David Bywater. “We look forward to becoming the residential solar provider of choice for Vermont residents and helping them start on the path to energy independence.”

All in all, and including its eventual return to Nevada, Vivint Solar now operates in 19 states, and given the way investors are reacting to this news, it could turn out to be a very good year for Vivint Solar.


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Joshua S Hill

I'm a Christian, a nerd, a geek, and I believe that we're pretty quickly directing planet-Earth into hell in a handbasket! I also write for Fantasy Book Review (.co.uk), and can be found writing articles for a variety of other sites. Check me out at about.me for more.

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