A Challenge for Our Developers

I would love to see a race to the top in this game....


Via Sustainable Industries: http://www.sustainableindustries.com/breakingnews/88483027.html

One of the nation’s largest real estate service providers is getting into the solar services game.
Los Angeles–based CB Richard Ellis (NYSE: CBG) announced in March the launch of a new arm called CBRE Solar. CBRE is partnering with Smart Energy Capital, a solar finance, development and advisory firm on the venture. The new venture comes in response to client requests, a drop in prices for solar equipment and an ease in financing as the recession begins to wane, says David Pogue, national director of sustainability at CBRE.

CBRE Solar says it will offer a broad range of solar energy solutions for clients, including solar power purchase agreements, roof leases, advisory services, project development services, project management services and solar project investment opportunities.

CBRE is the world’s largest real estate services company, thanks to its more than $4.2 billion in 2009 revenues, it says. Though CBRE Solar does not have specific goals for the amount of solar energy it hopes to hook up to the grid, the new effort is likely to result in a big boost for solar projects on commercial buildings, Pogue says. Combining its reach with SEC’s “expertise … will enable us to grow distributed solar in a significant way," he says.

Mount Kisco, NY–based SCE managed a portfolio of more than 300 megawatts of solar projects and raised in excess of $200 billion of innovative financings.

CBRE’s size should also help it bring capital to projects and secure power purchase agreements (PPA) for installations, Pogue says. “We believe we have a competitive advantage in creating economies of scale in equipment, installation and financing costs, which will benefit our clients and drive the volume of PPA opportunities for us,” he says.