— E.ON & GE Ventures Join New Round to Advance Global Solar Energy Business
OAKLAND, California, April 4, 2014 Sungevity, Inc., a recognized leader in the global solar market, today announced $70 million in new equity financing. The funding round, comprised of both new and existing investors, was led by Jetstream Ventures, a Nashville-based fund focused on long-term investment in private companies using technology to achieve environmental and social impact. Other investors include E.ON, one of the world’s largest investor-owned utility companies, and GE Ventures, whose initial investment in the company was announced in July 2013. Sungevity will use the funds to extend its technology platform to service customers in the growing list of grid parity markets around the world.
The company’s U.S. sales doubled in 2013, fueled by proprietary remote solar design and instant quoting technology, as well as strategic business partnerships. Sungevity’s business interests in the Netherlands and Australia, launched in Q4 2011 and Q2 2012 respectively, also are scaling rapidly.
“With E.ON and GE Ventures as equity investors, the Sungevity coalition now includes the world’s largest investor-owned utility company, the company that built much of the planet’s power infrastructure and one of the world’s largest retailers,” said Andrew Birch, Sungevity’s Chief Executive Officer. “That lineup combined with our customer-centric technology platform and the capitalization from this investment round, positions Sungevity to be the leading global solar brand.”
“Sungevity’s founding mission-based values combined with their technology-focused, capital-light business model, make them an exceptional choice for our first private market investment in downstream solar,” said Joel Dobberpuhl, Chief Executive Officer of Jetstream Capital, the parent company of Jetstream Ventures.
“E.ON is in the business of servicing energy customers across several countries, and as new, more customer-centric solutions around residential solar arise, we want to provide our customers with the best solutions available,” said Susana Quintana-Plaza, Vice President, Technology & Innovation/Strategic Co-Investment at E.ON SE. “Our capital investment in Sungevity’s technology and customer-centric platform is a significant part of this.”
About Sungevity, Inc.
Sungevity is a global solar energy provider focused on making it easy and affordable for homeowners to benefit from solar power. Leveraging proprietary remote solar design technology, Sungevity can deliver a firm quote instantly without a home visit and provide homeowners with immediate visibility to significant saving on their electricity bills. The company continues to grow its global customer base and now services nine U.S. states, the District of Columbia, The Netherlands and Australia. Sungevity also is Lowe’s exclusive US partner in residential solar, and was recently recognized by B Corp as one of the “Best for the World” companies for using the power of business to solve social and environmental problems. For more information, visit www.sungevity.com
