This news is classified in: Sustainable Energy Solar
Jun 2, 2020
Vivint Solar (VSLR), a leading full-service residential solar provider in the United States, today announced the closing of two separate debt transactions, totaling $545 million in incremental lender commitments. The first is a $245 million upsize to the company's already existing multi-lender revolving warehouse facility closed in 2019, for a total of $570 million in aggregate commitments. The second is a $300 million hold-co loan facility provided by the Brookfield Infrastructure Debt Fund, a global credit-focused platform managed by Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE: BAM).
The revolving warehouse facility's margin will increase to 3.1 percent with no change to the maturity date, advance rate, or other material commercial terms of the facility. The hold-co loan facility, which funded $200 million on Friday, allows for additional borrowings on future contracted cash flows of $100 million and will have an interest rate of 8.0 percent with a three-year maturity.
When combined together, the two debt facilities create an implied all-in interest rate of approximately 4.4 percent on new assets originated. This cost is approximately 70 basis points lower than the cost of the Solar Asset Backed Notes, Series 2018-1 transaction Vivint Solar closed in 2018.
"These transactions raise a significant amount of liquidity against our existing assets, provide for future debt capacity, and demonstrate our ability to access the capital markets for financing at a competitive cost of capital as we navigate the impacts of COVID-19 to our business," said Thomas Plagemann, chief commercial officer and head of capital markets for Vivint Solar. "Given the continued uncertainty in the capital markets, we feel the approach we have taken provides an excellent combination of all-in cost of capital and advance rate, with flexibility to access the securitization markets as they fully recover. It is also an indication of our investors' continued confidence in Vivint Solar's sustainable growth model and we are very pleased to be entering into a relationship with an experienced and highly reputable renewable energy investor such as Brookfield."
"Brookfield is pleased to support Vivint's continued success in the expanding residential solar market," said Hadley Peer Marshall, Brookfield's Managing Director and head of infrastructure credit for the Americas. "Through providing a flexible hold-co solution, we are delighted to finance Vivint Solar's portfolio of essential and diversified solar infrastructure backed by long-term customer agreements."
BofA Securities, Inc. acted as sole structurer and arranger for the hold-co loan.
Vivint Solar operates in 22 states and has raised more than $5.5 billion in cash equity, tax equity and debt from institutional investors, private equity firms and major Wall Street banks since its inception in 2011.
