OYA Solar, a North American full-service solar developer, has successfully closed a $35 million construction and interconnection financing from NY Green Bank, a state-sponsored, specialized financial entity and division of NYSERDA.
The financing will support the construction of three community solar projects in New York, the first of which, a 6.8 MW DC project in Constable is already under construction. OYA expects the three projects to be placed in service early next year. The projects will be the first in a 100 MW DC portfolio that OYA intends to construct through the end of 2021. Together, the entire portfolio will provide 155 GWh annually.
“We appreciate the support of NY Green Bank in achieving this significant milestone for our community solar business,” says Manish Nayar, founder and CEO of OYA Solar. “In a difficult market for both construction debt and tax equity, NY Green Bank exhibited flexibility and ingenuity in tailoring a very competitively priced solution, which will enable us to place 22 MW DC in service in the first half of 2021. We look forward to expanding our relationship with NY Green Bank as we focus our attention on the remainder of our 2021 construction portfolio.”
The successful closing of the transaction proves that the solar industry can mobilize quickly to become an immediate driver of economic growth and employment during COVID-19. The construction of these projects will have a significant and immediate positive economic impact in upstate New York and provide direct economic and environmental benefits to their residents for the next 25 years.
OYA plans to increase its investment across the state to help support the New York’s goal to deploy 6 GW of distributed solar by 2025. OYA is working with various tax equity parties to secure commitments for 2021.