Aurora Solar, a cloud-based solar projects design and proposal software solutions provider, has raised $200 million in a Series D funding round co-led by current investors Coatue and Energize Ventures with participation from Fifth Wall, ICONIQ, and new investors, Lux Capital, and Emerson Collective. The funds will be used to accelerate the U.S.-based company’s business product development, increase collaboration with solar customers, and equip solar professionals with an easily accessible software platform for every step of the solar adoption process.
Our Next Energy (ONE), an energy storage solutions company developing a hybrid system based on a cobalt-free battery and a lithium iron phosphate battery for EVs, has raised $65 million in a Series A funding round. The new funding round was led by BMW i Ventures with Coatue Management, a New York-based investment firm, and existing investors, including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Assembly Ventures, Flex, and Volta Energy Technologies. Including the latest round, the company has raised $90 million to date. The company intends to use the fresh funds to expand its operations and plan for increasing demand and customer activity.
Erthos, an energy technology company focused on breakthrough advances for utility-scale solar, raised $17.5 million in a Series B financing round. The funding round was led by Capricorn Investment Group. The investment was made by Capricorn’s Technology Impact Fund, a venture capital partnership that invests in companies developing novel technologies and business models to propel a new wave of renewable companies and infrastructure. The funds will be used for company expansion in terms of employees and to support further product development in the areas of robotic cleaning, system analytics, and modeling software.
Minnesota-based ALLETE, an energy company, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of the membership interests in New Energy Equity, a distributed solar project developer, for approximately $165.5 million, subject to a working capital adjustment. New Energy Equity has completed more than 250 projects across the U.S., totaling more than 310 MW. New Energy Equity offers its customers comprehensive solar operations, maintenance, and asset management services through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Energy Support Services. Recently Impact Power Solutions (IPS Solar) was acquired by New Energy Equity. IPS Solar will retain its branding and corporate headquarters in Roseville, Minnesota.
Coreshell, a California startup that develops nanolayer coating technology for rechargeable batteries and technology to solve battery performance issues, raised $12 million in Series A round. Trousdale Ventures, Industry Ventures, and Helios Capital Ventures led the financing round. Other existing investors include Entrada Ventures, Foothill Ventures, and Asymmetry Ventures. Coreshell has raised a total of $19 million to date. The new financing will be used to accelerate its battery coating technology developed to drastically increase the capacity and range of lithium-ion batteries to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles globally.
Grenergy, the renewable energy producer and a developer of solar, wind, and storage projects, has acquired a 40% stake in Alabama-based solar and battery project developer Sofos Harbert Renewable Energy. This acquisition helps Grenergy to enter the U.S. renewable energy market. Grenergy will have the option of acquiring the entire shareholding of Sofos Harbert after three years from closing this transaction. Sofos Harbert Renewable Energy has a solar pipeline of 1.9 GW and 600 MWh in energy storage projects under development in three different electricity markets (Southeast, PJM, MISO).
GridPoint, a building energy management and optimization technology provider, has closed a $75 million strategic capital raise led by the Sustainable Investing Group within Goldman Sachs Asset Management (Goldman Sachs), with additional participation by Shell Ventures. GridPoint will use the proceeds of this investment to deploy its technology platform that makes buildings smarter and more sustainable through data analytics, intelligent automation, and machine learning. It will also accelerate the deployment of GridPoint’s innovative solutions in more buildings and, in turn, accelerate the substantial impact of its technology on utilities and energy grids. Funds will be used to accelerate growth by investing in GridPoint’s technology, sales, marketing, delivery, and customer success teams.
MaxSolar, a provider of O&M and technical and asset management services for commercial solar PV systems, entered into an agreement to sell 65% of the company shares to Nature Infrastructure Capital and 35% to GREENVOLT. The 100% acquisition will be conducted jointly with Nature Infrastructure Capital, GREENVOLT, and the company’s management team. Alexa Capital, London (UK) accompanied the sale process as a financial advisor.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&A transactions in solar, energy storage, smart grid, and efficiency sectors, click here.
Read last week’s funding roundup.
