Solstice and Reactivate Expand Community Solar Partnership, Bringing Equitable Clean Energy Access to Households Across Illinois
Three of the initial community solar projects are more than 75% subscribed, serving low- to moderate-income households who can save up to 50% on the supply portion of their electric bills; two additional projects have recently begun enrollment.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., June 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Solstice Power Technologies (Solstice) and Reactivate, a joint venture powered by Invenergy and Lafayette Square, have entered into an agreement whereby Solstice will provide subscriber acquisition and ongoing subscriber management services to Reactivate community solar projects across the United States over the next several years.
Reactivate and Solstice will collaborate to achieve their shared goals to deliver hundreds of megawatts of community solar projects to low-income, environmental justice and energy transition communities nationwide. The partnership will leverage Solstice's expertise in community-building and LMI customer acquisition and Reactivate's community solar project development and operation, workforce training and development, and other areas of expertise to focus on communities that have been historically left out of the clean energy transition.
In January 2023, Reactivate and Solstice held a successful open enrollment launch for three low-income community solar projects through the Illinois Solar For All: Community Solar program; these projects have now surpassed 75% of their subscription capacity. Two new projects in Illinois commenced enrollment last month, bringing the total projects to five. The Illinois projects will generate over 20 million kWh of renewable electricity annually with the capacity to serve more than 3,500 households statewide. Solstice has already enrolled more than 1,500 income-eligible households in the Illinois solar farms, partnering with community organizations and municipalities to simplify the enrollment process.
"We're excited to announce that we will continue working with Reactivate on multiple projects over the coming years. Subscribers have already enrolled at record speed for the projects and we are honored to get to work with a mission-driven development partner who not only understands the energy burden excluded communities face, but is actively doing something about it," said Steph Speirs, Co-Founder and CEO of Solstice.
Distributed solar energy and storage development is on the rise in the U.S., protecting many homeowners from rising utility rates, and that growth is expected to continue in the coming years. However, 77% of Americans are still unable to participate in rooftop solar. This includes renters and households who may not qualify due to credit scores, incomes below minimum thresholds, unsuitable rooftops, or inadequate sun exposure. Community solar bridges that gap, providing the opportunity for more households to access local renewable energy with monthly savings on their electricity bill by subscribing to a portion of a solar farm. Community solar reduces electric bills, supports local businesses, fuels job growth, improves public infrastructure, and increases property tax revenue – all crucial for strengthening energy transition communities.
"To pave the way towards a fair and just transition to clean energy, it's crucial to establish meaningful partnerships. Reactivate's collaboration with Solstice is a major step in this direction. Our goal is to save low- to moderate-income households $50 million in energy costs by 2030," said Utopia Hill, CEO of Reactivate. "By joining forces with Solstice, we're not only investing capital, but fostering local economic development in communities that have been historically marginalized. This partnership will truly make a difference and create a lasting impact."
Solstice specializes in securing and scaling partnerships, enabling their development partners to tap into a network of trusted community members who are excited about clean energy projects coming to their friends and family. Solstice's ambassador program gives financial incentives to customers who refer others to the community solar projects, strengthening the impact each community member can make. With a strong track record of advocating for LMI communities, a dedicated bilingual customer success team, and experience with the sensitivities of enrolling low-income customers, Solstice was selected as the customer management provider for Reactivate's national community solar portfolio.
By bringing their combined strengths together, Solstice and Reactivate will unlock greater savings for communities and support an equitable clean energy transition.
About Solstice Power Technologies
Solstice Power Technologies is a leading U.S. customer acquisition and management service provider in community solar and is a wholly owned subsidiary of global energy infrastructure and investment leader Mitsui & Co. Ltd. Solstice operates under Mitsui's North American investment arm, MyPower Corp. Mitsui holds a robust balance sheet and an "A" credit rating from Standard & Poor's. Originally based in Cambridge, MA, Solstice was founded in 2016 by women of color co-founders who believe every community can be powered by renewable energy. Solstice is dedicated to bringing affordable solar power to the 77% of American households that cannot support a rooftop system. Community solar offers a solution, enabling residents to support local clean energy at no upfront cost and save money on their electric bill every year. Solstice offers customer solutions for the community solar industry ‒ enrolling households and local organizations in shared projects, creating financing innovations that expand access to underserved communities (the EnergyScore), and providing a frictionless subscriber management software platform for projects. For more information, visit https://solstice.us
About Reactivate
Reactivate, a mission-driven renewable energy company, founded by Invenergy and Lafayette Square, develops, owns, and operates renewable energy projects to improve the lives of people in low-to-moderate income and energy transition communities across the country. Reactivate's primary focus areas are community solar, small-scale utility, and next generation projects. Reactivate creates positive social and environmental impact in underserved communities by delivering renewable energy, environmental benefits, job opportunities, energy cost savings and opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses. Learn more about Reactivate by visiting www.reactivate.com.
Media Contacts
Mary Jackson
Solstice Power Technologies, LLC
press@solstice.us
Jeannette Torres
Reactivate, LLC
press@reactivate.com