Loan Supports Solar Access, Energy Savings and Green Jobs

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--#climateinvesting--Clean energy investment firm Sunwealth today announced a $2.9 million loan from Calvert Impact Capital to support Sunwealth’s solar access work. Sunwealth will use the financing, together with $4.3 million in tax equity investment from private investors, to support 18 solar projects on the rooftops and parking lots of nonprofit organizations, multi-family apartment buildings, houses of worship and commercial office buildings in communities underserved by traditional renewable energy financing. These community-based solar projects will generate enough electricity to power over 300 homes annually, and will provide Sunwealth’s solar customers with $3.8 million in lifetime energy savings. The loan will also help catalyze additional investment in Sunwealth’s innovative solar financing model.

Sunwealth brings critical capital to the commercial solar market – supporting solar projects ranging in size from 5 kilowatts to 1 megawatt on building rooftops and parking lots. The company partners with local solar developers and installers to design and construct these projects, which deliver solar access and long-term, meaningful energy savings to building owners and to low- and moderate-income households through community shared solar agreements. Sunwealth helps investors like Calvert Impact Capital put their money to work in these community-based projects, building portfolios that contribute to a more diverse and inclusive solar economy while delivering strong, stable and predictable financial returns.

One of projects supported by Calvert Impact Capital’s investment is a 37-kilowatt installation on the rooftop of a multifamily apartment building owned by Fifth Avenue Committee (FAC), a nonprofit community development corporation in Brooklyn, NY. Installed by Brooklyn-based Solar Energy Systems, the system will allow FAC to provide building tenants with $240 in annual energy savings.

“Investors are looking for proactive solutions to climate change and inequality, two of the most pressing challenges of our time,” said Kevin Fanfoni, Director of Investments at Calvert Impact Capital. “Sunwealth offers both: reducing carbon emissions and delivering solar access and savings to underserved markets, while supporting green jobs at local small businesses. We’re proud to partner with them to build a more equitable and inclusive renewable energy future.”

“For over a generation, Calvert Impact Capital has helped make impact ‘investable,’” said Jon Abe, CEO of Sunwealth. “They’ve set the standard for investments that deliver social, environmental and financial returns – and made those returns accessible to all investors. They’re a key partner as we look to decarbonize, decentralize and democratize our clean energy economy.”

About Sunwealth

Sunwealth is a clean energy investment firm working to change who has access to renewable energy by changing the way we invest in it. Since 2014, Sunwealth has invested over $50 million in 400+ community-based solar projects nationwide and has delivered targeted returns to investors for 25 quarters with no defaults. In 2021, Impact Assets named Sunwealth to its IA50, a leading list of impact fund managers. Learn more at www.sunwealth.com.

About Calvert Impact Capital

Calvert Impact Capital invests to create a more equitable and sustainable world. Through our products and services, we raise capital from individual and institutional investors to finance intermediaries and funds that are investing in communities left out of traditional capital markets. During our 25-year history, we have mobilized over $2 billion of investor capital. More at www.calvertimpactcapital.org.

Jess Brooks
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Caitlin Rosser
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