Marc Palmer, CEO of New Resource Solutions | Financing Solar in the C&I Small Utility Space Ep.77

Schools, municipalities, nonprofits and small for-profit companies that want to go solar typically don’t have the resources to do so on their own. They need investors in clean energy projects to make it work.

Yet local EPCs tend to shy away from selling third-party-owned solar PPA projects to their customers and focus solely on cash deals.

So, how do we facilitate a working relationship between local EPC solar installers and the investors who want to finance these kinds of C&I projects in the small utility space?

Marc Palmer is the Cofounder and CEO of New Resource Solutions, a company developing software tools to reduce the soft costs associated with financing C&I solar projects in the US. Marc spent four years as Senior Manager of Finance at Invenergy before cofounding New Resource Solutions in 2017.

On this episode of Clean Power Hour, Marc joins Tim to explain how his team empowers local EPCs to sell third-party-owned solar power purchase agreement projects to their customers.

Marc discusses how it benefits local EPCs to sell PPAs and describes what makes the relationship between EPCs and investors such a challenge to navigate.

Listen in to understand why public entities are the sweet spot in the PPA market right now and learn how New Resource Solutions is helping the industry scale faster with tools to finance small C&I solar projects more efficiently.

Key Takeaways 

How the desire to work in a space he was passionate about led Marc to clean energy

How New Resource Solutions uses software to reduce the soft costs associated with financing C&I solar projects in the US

How Marc’s team empowers local EPCs to sell third-party-owned PPA projects to their customers

How a typical customer saves 15% on power with a solar PPA

How it benefits local EPCs to sell solar power purchase agreements

Why public entities (e.g.: schools, municipalities) serve as the majority of the solar PPA market at present

How Marc overcomes the 10-year contract limits on wastewater treatment facilities

What makes the relationship between local EPCs and investors such a challenge

Why the Massachusetts SMART and Illinois Adjustable Block solar programs have been so successful

How Marc thinks about helping the solar industry scale faster 

How the Solar Finance Fund provi

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The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems. Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com