Leading US residential solar PV provider Vivint Solar announced earlier this week that it had closed a new round of new financing worth $811 million to be used for various debt and corporate purposes.
Vivint Solar, which over the last couple of quarters has been posting relatively lackluster performance, has this week announced it has closed a new round of debt financing over two separate transactions worth $811 million which the company notes will be used to repay in full, or reduce the outstanding balance of, certain existing debt facilities in the company and its subsidiaries, and for use in general corporate purposes. The company’s aim is to lower Vivint Solar’s blended total credit spread by approximately 160 basis points.
In addition, the financing will also provide back-leveraging financing for a portfolio of 16 tax equity funds and one wholly owned subsidiary that own 575 megawatts (MW) and over 86,000 residential solar energy systems.
“We are pleased to announce this new milestone in the evolution of our financing strategy, which optimizes and simplifies our term debt structure while allowing us to repay more expensive outstanding loans, increase advance rates, lock in attractive fixed borrowing rates and create incremental liquidity for the business,” said Thomas Plagemann, Vivint Solar’s Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Capital Markets. “We appreciate our investors’ continued support and commitment to accelerating solar power adoption.”
Of note is the wide range of banks involved in the two funding rounds. The first was a capital markets issuance by the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Vivint Solar Financing V, LLC, of $466 million aggregate principal amount of Solar Asset Backed Notes, Series 2018-1 (issued in two classes – $400 million Series 2018-1 Class A Notes and $66 million Series 2018-1 Class B Notes). The original offering was only $355 but was upsized to become the largest securitization of residential solar power purchase agreements and leases to date. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC and Citigroup Global Markets, Inc. acted as joint bookrunners and co-structuring agents for the offering and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. acted as co-managers for the issuance of the Series 2018-1 Notes.
The second funding saw Vivint Solar Financing IV issue a private placement of $345 million aggregate principal amount of Solar Asset Backed Notes, Series 2018-2, of which Credit Suisse was the sole arranger of the private placement of the Series 2018-2 Notes.
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