COMMUNITY SOLAR FINANCE STATE OF

THE ART

Joy Hughes – Solar Gardens Institute

Solar Gardener Training

Mind the Gap!

Communities

Financiers

Owner

Owner

Owner

User

House of Worship

Nonprofit

Community Center

Community Supported EnergyMultiple Owners, Single Off-Taker

Owners | Off-takers

Co-op

Securitized

Exempt LLC

JOBS Act

Owner Guarantor

UserUser User

Solar GardenSingle Owner, Multiple Off-

Takers (Power Purchase Model)

Owners | Off-takers

Bank

Private Equity

Limited Partnership

Local Bank

Corporation

Insurance

Municipality

Owner UserUserOwner / User

Owner / User

Owner Owner /User

Community PowerMultiple Owners, Multiple Off-

Takers

Doesn’t exist ... … yet.

Policy, People, and Projects

Online Solar Gardener Training

Featuring “Master Gardeners”

50+ Trainees

Live Confluence TourBoston, NYC, Omaha, San Francisco

PREPARING COMMUNITIES:

Policy, People, and Projects

Project Assistance20+ projects - five states

in our “seedling bed”

Advice for Students12 students across U.S.

PREPARING COMMUNITIES:

Learning From Communities

Communities want to be told what to do

BUT

They want local control

Communities want to choose a local installer, find their own subscribers, and own the project through a “flip” model. Solar finance literacy is needed. All stakeholders must be included.

Communities want to own the project

BUT

They want no risk

PREPARING COMMUNITIES:

Social Score Principles of

Community Power

1. Grass Roots

2. Maximize distribution

3. Minimize impacts

4. Multiple use

5. Supports local institutions

6. Community ownership

7. Keep money local

8. Inclusivity

9. Community engagement

10. Solidarity

VETTING FINANCE PROGRAMS:

Environmental Score Principles of Responsible

Solar Development

1. Tree Preservation

2. Share the Land

3. Shade over Pavement

4. Good Neighbor Policy

5. Limited Scale

6. Local Designers

7. Micro-grids

8. Responsible Business Practices

9. Microfinance

10. A hand up

VETTING FINANCE PROGRAMS:

Financial Score Subscriber’s Bill of

Rights

1. Reasonable cost

2. Path to Ownership

3. Portability / Transferability

4. Financial Protection

5. Customer Service

6. Low Fees

7. Solar Gardener Support

8. Host Support

9. Program Support

10. Community Support

VETTING FINANCE PROGRAMS:

Learning From Financiers

Financiers want shovel-ready projects

BUT

They don’t want to pay for up-front costs

Financiers want low cost proven installers - and subscribers with stellar

credit. They are constrained by tax law and by their

bankers’ risk models. Brand-new programs are scary.

VETTING FINANCE PROGRAMS:

Financiers want to control the project

BUT

They want no risk

Solar Garden

Security

Co-opHosting Service

s

Tax Equity

Installer Choice

CSE

Rooftop Progra

m

MarketplaceCommunity gets a good finance fit

Financiers get qualified projects

Solar Gardener Training

Project Checklist

Community Decision

Manage Expectations

Program Scoring

Project Pitches

Standard offer

Open Source Contracts

FinanciersCommunities

Thank You!

solargardens.org

Joy Hughes – founder – joy@solargardens.org

Robyn Lydick – Media Relations – robyn@solargardens.org

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