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SOUTHERN SOLAR SUMMIT COMMON CHALLENGES WITH FUNDING SOLAR PROJECTS SEPTEMBER 19, 2013. William P. Ewing Partner Barnes & Thornburg LLP 3343 Peachtree Road, N.E., Suite 1150 Atlanta, Georgia 30326-1428 Direct: 404-264-4050 Cell: 404-502-4402 Fax: 404-264-4033
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SOUTHERN SOLAR SUMMITCOMMON CHALLENGES WITH FUNDING SOLAR PROJECTSSEPTEMBER 19, 2013 William P. Ewing Partner Barnes & Thornburg LLP 3343 Peachtree Road, N.E., Suite 1150 Atlanta, Georgia 30326-1428 Direct: 404-264-4050 Cell: 404-502-4402 Fax: 404-264-4033 william.ewing@btlaw.com www.btlaw.com Stephen Elkind Senior Director, Development OCI Solar Power, LLC Five Concourse Parkway, Suite 2500 Atlanta, Georgia 30328 Direct: 770-375-2424 Cell: 310-738-8677 Fax: 770-375-2336 selkind@ocisolarpower.com www.ocisolarpower.com Atlanta Chicago Delaware Indiana Los Angeles Michigan Minneapolis Ohio Washington, D.C.
INTRODUCTION • Alignment of all construction, financing, tax planning and contracts takes time and coordination – with many pitfalls • Solar project finance depends heavily upon federal and state tax incentives (generally > 60% of lifetimeproject cost) • Federal investment tax credit • Accelerated depreciation deductions • State tax credits and other incentives (e.g., Georgia Clean Energy State Tax Credit) • Common funding vehicles • Partnership Flip • Sale/Leaseback
SOLAR ECOSYSTEM Federal Permitting Property Tax Assessment Tax Equity Financing EPC State Permitting Debt Financing Developer` Land Owner Insurance Carriers Public Finance Legislative Policy Equipment Suppliers Mineral Rights Owner Utility / Grid Operators County Permitting
Objective: Developer wants long term ownership
Objective: Developer wants to maximize upfront cash
Conclusion Awareness of all parties involved, all requirements for moving forward and all timing constraints will help avoid project pitfalls