Woodlawn Associates has just made a version of its tax equity financial model available for sale at its web store.
The model can be used to answer questions such as:
- Residential solar dealer-installer: How much value do third-party financiers get from systems I sell for them? How much value would there be for me in a captive finance solution?
- Utility or power company: Distributed solar seems to be growing fast. What kind of returns could I get if I entered the residential or commercial solar market?
- New tax equity investor: I’ve been approached by a solar and wind energy developer requesting that I provide tax equity funding. They’ve given me a financial model, but it is hard to audit and I would prefer to have one of my own. Is this investment a good deal for me?
- Solar module or inverter manufacturer: I have a product whose operating characteristics are superior to those of my competitors’ products. What premium could I charge for my product and still given investors the same return? Alternatively, if I price at the market rate, how much of a return premium does this suggest for investors in the systems?
- Commercial rooftop owner: I’ve been approached by a solar developer offering to sell me power from a solar system they will install on my roof. How fair is the offer?
The model was designed for residential and commercial distributed solar, but can be modified for utility-scale wind or solar projects.
Designed for ease of audit, the model eschews, to the maximum extent possible, “circular” calculations and very long formulas in favor of a linear flow and easily understandable formulas.
Please check out the model in the store, view some sample pages, or contact us about modifying it for your specific needs.
Also note: We’ll be at REFF Wall Street this week and at Intersolar in San Francisco in early July, so let us know if you want to meet at either event.