Solar Finance


Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs)

A PPA is a long-term agreement to buy power from a third-party investor who invests in an installation at the host client’s site. Greenskies, using a third party source of funds, builds a solar energy facility on a client’s site and maintains and operates the facility for 6-25 years depending on the contract. This facility generates reliable, long-term, clean energy for use by the host client who is billed on a monthly cycle by Greenskies according to our remote monitoring system. The price of the solar electricity is predetermined for the duration of the agreement and is set to save the host client on utility bills

Under the terms of a PPA, an investment entity assumes the risks and responsibilities of ownership when it purchases the installation and Greenskies installs, operates and maintains the turn-key facility. Greenskies will clean the solar panels annually, provide preventative maintenance services, repair any faults, monitor energy production and the system's health and well-being. The host client run their businesses as usual, without any of the headaches of owning a power plant. At the end of the PPA term, the facility can be purchased by the host client from the investment entity at fair market value or the PPA can be renewed on favorable terms. The PPA enables the host client to benefit from the use of "green" energy, while still receiving some of the benefits of ownership (lower and/or "hedged" electricity costs, positive public image, etc. ) and allows them to spend their capital budget on their core businesses.

With third-party financing, the PV system is owned and operated by an entity that is separate from the building owner or the PV installer. The third-party investment entity has sufficient financial capital to pay for the entire installation and to maintain and operate the system over its lifetime. In return, the building owner signs a long term contract agreeing to purchase all the power produced by the PV system. PPAs are a way to install a large PV array with little or no up-front capital expense from the building owner. This type of financing may be most applicable to entities such as non-profits or public buildings. The investor will be the PV owner and can utilize the tax incentives available for PV projects, along with rebates and other incentives, plus the sale of the electricity from the PV array to return to wholeness plus profit.