Nelnet Renewable Energy Partners with Three Co-Investors to Complete $9.9 Million Solar Tax Equity Investment in the Northeast

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Apr 05, 2021, 16:15 ET

LINCOLN, Neb., April 5, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Nelnet Renewable Energy, a leading solar tax equity investor and fund manager, today announced the completion of a $9.9 million solar tax equity investment into a portfolio of projects in the Northeast with three co-investors. The investment received an E1 rating on its Green Transaction Evaluation from S&P Global Ratings for its Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) impact.

The portfolio of projects financed by the co-investment is expected to generate over 19,900 megawatt hours (MWhs) of solar energy per year for a portfolio of community solar subscribers – renters, homeowners, and businesses – in the state of New York. Over their 35-year lifecycle, the solar projects are expected to offset 332,000 tons of carbon in New York and New Jersey, which is the equivalent of burning 332 million pounds of coal.

A Nelnet (NYSE: NNI) company, Nelnet Renewable Energy will serve as the lead investor and fund manager over the duration of the investment. Nelnet's co-investors include Adams Bank & Trust and West Gate Bank, both of Nebraska.

Helping investors realize the benefits of tax equity co-investing furthers Nelnet Renewable Energy's mission of bringing clean, cost-effective solar power to more states and communities nationwide. "Supporting this portfolio moves Nelnet Renewable Energy closer to its 2025 vision of powering the creation, storage, and utilization of clean energy to more than 500,000 homes," said Scott Gubbels, executive director of tax and renewable energy at Nelnet.

"West Gate Bank is pleased to be able to partner with Nelnet in making solar tax credit investments into green energy projects around the country. We look forward to continuing our partnership in 2021," said Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer Carl Sjulin.

Nelnet continues to secure an additional $80 million in 2021 solar tax credits for its co-investor platform.

The S&P Green Transaction Evaluation is an asset-level environmental credential that builds upon current frameworks of governance and transparency and considers approaches for climate resilience and environmental impact. These analyses aim to provide investors with a comprehensive picture of the green impact and climate risk attributes of their portfolios and can be applied to any type of financing, in part or in full. E1 is the highest score on the scale; E4 is the lowest. The full Green Transaction Evaluation report is available here.

About Nelnet and Nelnet Renewable Energy: Nelnet (NYSE: NNI) is a diversified financial services and technology company focused on offering educational services, technology solutions, professional services, telecommunications, and asset management. Nelnet is a leading tax equity investor into federal solar investment tax credits, having invested over $145 million of its own tax liability into 83 low-risk solar energy projects nationwide. This experience, coupled with their proven asset management capabilities, allows them to offer a unique tax equity co-investment platform to other investors that is based on value creation and awarding-winning customer service. For more information, visit NelnetInc.com/coinvesting.

SOURCE Nelnet Renewable Energy