Sunrun Partners with GRID Alternatives to Finance Solar Projects for Low-Income Homeowners
Makes Solar More Accessible and Affordable for Qualified Families Nationally
SAN FRANCISCO, April 25, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sunrun Inc. (Nasdaq:RUN), the largest dedicated residential solar company in the United States, today announced an extension to their partnership with GRID Alternatives, the nation’s largest non-profit solar installer, to provide financing for solar installations in low-income communities.
Under this agreement, Sunrun will serve as third-party owner (TPO) through its BrightSave PrepaidTM solar lease and solar power purchase agreement (PPA) products for hundreds of solar system installations annually. With this arrangement, Sunrun will own, operate, maintain and insure the solar systems. GRID Alternatives will install the solar systems and fund each customer’s prepaid 20-year solar PPA or lease bill. The TPO model allows Sunrun to leverage both the federal investment tax credit and depreciation benefits on these projects, reducing costs for GRID Alternatives and helping the organization serve more low-income households throughout California and nationally. The PPA product was recently approved for use on installations funded by California’s Single-Family Affordable Solar Homes Program (SASH), a low-income solar incentive program managed by GRID Alternatives.
“Serving all homeowners has been a foundational business practice for Sunrun and we are excited to accelerate these efforts in low-income markets with GRID Alternatives,” said Paul Winnowski, President and Chief Operating Officer of Sunrun. “Customers will receive all the benefits of going solar with no upfront costs, while realizing monthly savings on their utility bills. We are committed to partnering with companies, such as GRID Alternatives, who share our same customer-centric philosophy, providing them the resources necessary to successfully meet their goals.”
“Maximizing the financial benefits of solar to our clients is our top priority,” said Tim Sears, COO and co-founder of GRID Alternatives. “This partnership helps us to do that in the most cost-effective way, allowing us to stretch our resources further to serve even more families in more regions.”
Sunrun has also been a long-time philanthropic supporter of GRID Alternatives, providing both financial support and employee volunteerism to help extend the benefits of solar power to low-income communities across the country.
Sunrun is the nation's largest standalone provider of residential solar, storage and energy management services. The company works to help homeowners utilize solar energy tailored for their home, their lifestyle and their budget, all while helping reduce the use of dirty fossil fuels.
About Sunrun
Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN) provides clean energy to homeowners. It is the largest dedicated residential solar company in the United States whose mission is to create a planet run by the sun. Since establishing the solar as a service model in 2007, Sunrun continues to lead the industry by striving to provide homeowners clean energy at a savings to traditional electricity and with end-to-end service. The company designs, installs, finances, insures, monitors and maintains the solar panels on a homeowner's roof, while families receive predictable pricing for 20 years or more. For more information please visit: www.sunrun.com.
About GRID Alternatives
GRID Alternatives is America’s largest nonprofit solar installer, bringing clean energy technology and job training to low-income families and underserved communities through a network of community partners and philanthropic supporters. GRID has installed over 8,000 solar electric systems with a combined installed capacity of 30MW, saving customers $240 million in lifetime electricity costs, preventing 660,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions, and providing over 30,000 people with solar training. GRID has eleven regional offices and affiliates serving California, Colorado, the Mid-Atlantic, the New York tri-state area, Tribal communities nationwide, and Nicaragua. For more information, visit www.gridalternatives.org.
Media Contacts: Sunrun Trina Smith Trina.Smith@sunrun.com 425.269.4636 GRID Alternatives Julian Foley jfoley@gridalternatives.org 510.731.1188
Released April 25, 2017