CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) today announced that its Power and Energy business served as coordinating lead arranger on a $151 million financing for the 250-megawatt Galloway I solar farm planned for Concho County, Texas.
The financing was arranged on behalf of Skyline Renewables and 8minute Solar Energy (8minute), which will continue to jointly oversee development and construction of the project. Galloway I was acquired by Skyline Renewables, an experienced renewables company backed by the infrastructure team at Ardian, a world-leading private investment house.
The project is supported in part by a power purchase agreement with a major energy marketer and a fixed-shape hedge with Morgan Stanley Capital Group. CIT led a group of four other lenders in arranging the financing, with Morgan Stanley Renewables serving as tax equity investor.
"We're very pleased to be adding such a robust solar project in the dynamic Texas energy market," said Martin Mugica, Skyline Renewables President & CEO. "This latest project marks another important step forward to becoming a leading North American clean independent energy company."
"Market demand remains strong for renewable power generated by projects like the Galloway solar farm," said Dr. Tom Buttgenbach, Founder and CEO of 8minute. "We greatly appreciated the expertise of CIT's Power and Energy team in leading the financing for this exciting new project."
"8minute and Skyline are well known for developing and operating successful utility-scale renewable projects, and we are pleased to work with them to arrange financing for Galloway I," said Mike Lorusso, managing director and group head for CIT's Power and Energy business.
CIT consistently ranks among the nation's top lenders for renewable energy projects, as reported by market research firm Inframation, an Acruis company. Earlier this year, CIT also was recognized as Renewable Energy Lead Arranger of the Year by Power Finance & Risk, a top energy industry trade publication.
Power and Energy, part of CIT's Commercial Finance division, leverages its deep industry knowledge and expertise to offer comprehensive financing solutions for renewable and conventional power generation. The unit manages a large, diverse portfolio that includes investments in all asset classes across the energy sector.
About CIT
CIT is a leading national bank focused on empowering businesses and personal savers with the financial agility to navigate their goals. CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) is a financial holding company with over a century of experience and operates a principal bank subsidiary, CIT Bank, N.A. (Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender). The company's commercial banking segment includes commercial financing, community association banking, middle market banking, equipment and vendor financing, factoring, railcar financing, treasury and payments services, and capital markets and asset management. CIT's consumer banking segment includes a national direct bank and regional branch network. Discover more at cit.com/about.
About 8minute Solar Energy
As a nationwide leader in solar-plus-storage, 8minute Solar Energy (8minute) is championing the clean energy transition in the United States and shaping the future of energy. Since its founding in 2009, 8minute has successfully put 2 GW of solar projects into operation and currently has over 18 GW of solar and storage projects under development. By focusing on technology and engineering innovation, 8minute's best-in-class team has continued to set new industry records, developing the largest solar cluster in the nation starting in 2011, delivering the first operational solar plant in the U.S. to beat fossil fuel prices in 2016, and setting the record for the lowest cost solar and solar-plus-storage projects in 2019. As the largest solar developer in the country with an established track record of delivering above-market profitability, 8minute is pioneering a new generation of large-scale, fully dispatchable solar power. For more information, please visit www.8minute.com, and follow 8minute on Twitter and LinkedIn.
