Utility-scale solar power firm bags $140m funding

SolarReserve, a US developer of utility scale solar power plants has filled its boots with $140m in a second round of funding.

Financing was led by Citi Alternative Investments’ renewable energy private equity group, Sustainable Development Investments and Credit Suisse’s Customized Fund Investment Group, with other investors including US Renewables Group, Good Energies, PCG Clean Energy & Technology Fund and Nazarian Enterprises.

The funding booty will help SolarReserve expand as the solar energy market grows and enable the company to progress its development of more than 5,000MW of utility scale solar power plants around the world.

US Renewables Group’s managing partner Lee Bailey, who also serves as chairman of SolarReserve’s board of directors, says:

“The additional funding provides SolarReserve with the resources to aggressively pursue the expanding market for solar energy projects, and also provides SolarReserve’s potential clients with a resounding vote of confidence that its technology is commercially ready for the market. It’s also a huge step forward for investment leaders like Citi and Credit Suisse to show their commitment to alternative fuel development.”

SolarReserve holds the exclusive worldwide licence for the molten salt power tower solar technology (pictured), which offers large-scale energy generation and storage and the ability to cater to peak requirements or 24-hour a day electricity demand.

Terry Murphy, president and CEO of SolarReserve, says:

“The SolarReserve power tower, which utilises molten salt to store the sun’s thermal energy, can dispatch hundreds of megawatts of electric power on-demand with zero carbon emissions. This technology is real, it’s reliable and it’s ready for worldwide deployment.”