Page 50 - North American Clean Energy March April 2015

investing in clean energy

Solar Asset Management

A marathon, not a sprint

By Chad Sachs

Over the last decade, a tremendous growth in solar photovoltaic industry. As with any signiicant capital
(PV) installations have been sited across the United States. investment, solar power system owners
Currently, there are nearly 20 gigawatts (GW) of solar power and operators have an obligation to

deployed in the US, nearly tripling the cumulative deployment of manage signiicant capital assets eiciently,
7.7 GW in 2012. hat’s certainly an impressive igure, denoting responsibly, and proitably.
solar energy’s sure foothold in today’s energy sector.
After all, it’s clear the projects are
As solar becomes a mainstream energy resource and an getting built. Now, it’s imperative to ensure

established investment asset class, it’s time to turn the focus someone is taking care of them properly.
on the future—and, on ensuring the long-term success of the
Performance standards
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Whether it’s a ive-kilowatt (kW) system

on a residential rooftop or a 50-megawatt
(MW) ground-mounted, utility-scale solar
array, the goal for any solar power project
should be to ensure certain qualities,

including safety, reliability, and durability.
Of course, the return on investment (ROI)
is also important.
he challenge is that these systems are

purposely exposed to the sun and the
elements. Wear and tear takes its toll
over time, so how can one ensure—or,
even, exceed—expectations as a steward

of these assets? hese systems are power
plants, after all, and not simple appliances.
hey have complex contracts and highly
engineered capital structures. his is where

solar asset management plays a critical role.

Asset management
When deploying solar, it’s anticipated

that projects meet their performance
expectations. A great deal of technical
and inancial expertise goes into a
system’s design, development, and

execution. Careful fulillment of ongoing
requirements, as well as operations and
maintenance (O&M) duties, enables

projects to live up to these expectations.
Comprehensive solar asset management
helps ensure solar projects fulill their
demanding obligations, and involves

precise contractual, inancial, and technical
acumen. Each one of these components
is also inextricably intertwined. System
owners can’t just focus on one aspect at

North America’s Premier Exhibition the expense of the other two. Technical
and Conference for the Solar Industry optimization doesn’t mean much, for
instance, unless it’s tied to the boundaries
Moscone Center, San Francisco
set by contracts and incentives, achieving

the inancial goals of investors and owners.

The solar hotspot for connecting 17,000 visitors and
550 international exhibitors
Leveraging incentives
Meet the decision makers who are shaping the solar market Solar system owners are encouraged
Identify prospects and implement your business strategies
Tap into the incredible potential of the U.S. solar market
to leverage all tax and other incentives
Go solar at North America's most-attended solar event
ofered. hese incentives introduce a host
of complicated inancial and contractual
structures, and often entail complex,

Co-located with
ongoing obligations that need to be
Exhibit now!
managed carefully.
A solar plant may be performing
beautifully, but if the project’s contracts

aren’t fulilled on time or as promised,
beneits can be stripped away. For example,
many PV system owners have accepted cash

50 nacleanenergy.com
MARCH/APRIL 2015