Ojjo Secures $40 Million Series C Funding Round to Scale Next Generation Solar Foundations

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Sep 20, 2022, 08:00 ET

Ojjo's Earth Truss System Cuts Steel Volume and Labor Costs and Speeds Construction: Funding Supports Company's Expansion to Execute on 9-GW Project Pipeline

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., Sept. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Ojjo, the leading provider of next-generation solar foundations, has closed a $40 million Series C funding round led by NGP ETP, the energy transition investing platform of NGP, with Ajax Strategies also participating. In addition, James Wallis, Partner at NGP, has joined Ojjo's Board of Directors. The new funding will accelerate Ojjo's growth and execution on its 9-Gigawatt active project pipeline. Ojjo's patented Earth Truss^TM System offers a fast and efficient means of securing ground mount solar systems—typically requiring significantly less steel volume and labor as compared to customary pile foundations. The company's system has been contracted or constructed in over 1.6 gigawatts (GW) of solar projects to date, including on the nation's largest standalone solar and storage project, Gemini Solar. Ojjo has previously raised a total of $27M across two prior funding rounds, with participation from Cthulhu Ventures and other investors.

"We're thrilled to welcome our investors, NGP ETP and Ajax, who have long shared Ojjo's vision for accelerating the growing and vibrant solar industry," said Mike Miskovsky, Chairman and CEO of Ojjo. "For too long, our industry has had to make do with pile foundations that were never designed for solar applications — often resulting in avoidable project costs and labor inefficiencies. As we enter the era of Terawatt-scale solar, our industry will increasingly require optimized, solar-specific mounting and installation hardware. This investment is the critical next step to scaling Ojjo's innovative technology and speeding the nation's transition to solar."

"Solar foundations represent a major untapped opportunity in the industry. We believe that Ojjo's experienced team is perfectly positioned to deliver innovation, automation, and cost savings at a time when the industry needs it most," said James Wallis, Partner at NGP. "NGP's extensive portfolio and deep expertise — spanning both traditional oil and gas as well as energy transition segments — allowed us to quickly recognize the benefits of Ojjo's structural design and drilling-process innovations, resulting in dramatic reductions in pre-drill and remediation requirements. We are excited to offer our financial support and strategic guidance as Ojjo continues to expand and bring value to this market."

"We've been early supporters of Ojjo's team and technology, and our follow-on investment was a natural fit for our shared vision of delivering revolutionary solutions to solve climate change," said Matt Rogers, Ajax Operating Partner. "The timing couldn't be better for solar innovations such as Ojjo with the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which enables consistent growth over the next decade for domestic renewable energy production. Ojjo has all the necessary capabilities to help the industry scale to take full advantage of this unique and timely opportunity."

"Ojjo's Earth Truss systems have been proven in the field on hundreds of megawatts of projects, in a variety of soil conditions. It's clear the industry is hungry for technologies that can deliver project-level cost savings relative to today's commodity offerings," said Helena Kimball, President of Ojjo. "We have worked hard to establish the supply chain sophistication, drilling machine fleet uptime, and the field support to ensure our EPC customers have rewarding experiences installing Ojjo foundations. We are grateful to our investors for recognizing Ojjo's advantage, and for providing us the financial stability to scale well into the future."

Ojjo's Earth Truss System is a significant advancement in large-scale solar foundations, unlocking millions in value for the solar industry. Ojjo provides its Earth Truss hardware, field engineering services, and automated Truss Driver machines to solar developers, EPCs and their foundation subcontractors. Through in-depth operator and mechanic training, Ojjo creates close customer alignment and superior results. In addition, Ojjo has partnered with the top solar tracker manufacturers to develop streamlined, fully compatible hardware, further reducing steel componentry and overall system costs. The company's system has been installed by the nation's leading EPCs in over 550 MWs to date across Texas, Nevada, and Oregon, and is currently being installed on all 967 MWs of the Gemini Solar project. Additional projects are to be announced soon.

About Ojjo

Ojjo is the industry leader in the development and manufacture of next-generation solar foundations. Ojjo's patented approach combines novel hardware, the Earth Truss, with an innovative drilling machine, the Truss Driver. The Earth Truss is one of the fastest-to-install solar foundations in the industry, typically requiring significantly less steel volume and labor than a conventional pile system. Founded in 2018 by solar innovation veterans from Zep Solar and Tesla, Ojjo holds more than 250 domestic and international patents related to its system. Rapidly becoming the go-to solution for leading utility-scale projects, Ojjo has over 26 Gigawatts of opportunities across its overall North American pipeline.

For more information, visit: www.ojjo.com

About NGP ETP

NGP ETP focuses on investments that are part of the global transition toward a lower carbon economy. NGP ETP partners with top tier management teams and invests growth equity in companies that drive or enable the growth of renewable energy, the electrification of our economy or the more efficient use of energy. Founded in 2005, NGP ETP is one of the most experienced energy transition investors in the industry. For additional information, visit www.ngpenergycapital.com/energy-transition.

About Ajax Strategies

Ajax Strategies is a venture capital firm investing in entrepreneurs solving climate change. Since launching in 2014, Ajax Strategies has backed over 35 companies innovating across the energy, transportation, agriculture and manufacturing sectors. Ajax Strategies provides regulatory and operational expertise, as well as inclusive leadership team building, to help entrepreneurs scale their businesses into transformative category-leading companies.

SOURCE Ojjo