Solar Development

Partner John Fitzgerald Weaver is developing a portfolio of over 100 megawatts composed of sixteen Community Solar projects in the northeastern region. As owner of Commercial Solar Guy, Weaver directs various professionals – land acquisition and development, electrical and civil engineering, finance, and more – to bring this portfolio to market.

Developing this portfolio of solar power projects for sales to investors involves a set of very defined actions, some of which include:

1. Market analysis helps determine which states offer the best policy environments in which to invest time and resources. Weaver has been developing sites primarily in New York and Pennsylvania. While New York’s legislature has mandated a financially viable Community Solar program, Pennsylvania is currently stalled in their efforts to move forward with their community solar policies.
2. Site analysis helps determine whether a specific location is worth the investment risk. Two main site analysis actions must be taken:
   • Understanding whether the local power grid can accommodate loads from new solar power projects. Some states have existing tools like hosting capacity maps, while other states require more research.
   • Estimating the probability of a specific site being viable from a zoning standpoint – which means accounting for local laws, land and environmental considerations.
3. Securing site control is more than showing up with a contract, it’s understanding the landowner’s immediate needs and long term aspirations and desires. It takes a great deal of trust to enter into a 25 year relationship between landowners and developers. 
4. Gaining Interconnection and Zoning Approval. We make this long process of negotiating with utilities and meeting regulatory requirements much easier through comprehensive document collection and organization during the development process.

Currently, the portfolio is in the bidding stage. We submitted the portfolio to 20 unique groups, seven of whom returned a full bid – each of those bids in the range tens of millions, $USD. Then, we narrowed to a final three groups. Our team of lawyers and financial experts are currently reviewing the bids, and we hope to post an announcement soon when this portfolio sells.