Financing Is Key to Solar Industry Growth

By Travis Hoium – Jul 18, 2013 at 10:32AM

NASDAQ: FSLR

First Solar

Market Cap

$19B

Today's Change

(2.85%) $4.93

Current Price

$178.01

Price as of April 17, 2024, 4:00 p.m. ET

From traditional financing to leases, the solar industry has come a long way.

Solar financing is still a relatively new phenomenon but it's come a long way in just the last few years. Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A 0.36%) recently sold $1 billion in financing for a utility-scale project, and SunPower (SPWR) and SolarCity (SCTY.DL) are two of the leasing leaders who have developed financing that brings in tax equity.

The next step is securitization, REITs, and MLPs, which may not be far off. Motley Fool contributor Travis Hoium covers where the industry has been and where it's going in the video below.

Fool contributor Travis Hoium manages an account that owns shares of SunPower and personally owns shares and has the following options: long January 01 2015 $7 calls on SunPower, long January 01 2015 $5 calls on SunPower, long January 01 2015 $15 calls on SunPower, and long January 01 2015 $25 calls on SunPower. The Motley Fool recommends Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool owns shares of Wells Fargo. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.