Key Equipment Finance, one of the nation’s largest bank-held equipment finance companies and an affiliate of KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY), today announced it has provided $5.1 million in financing to Wayne, PA.-based Dynamic Energy Solutions, LLC for a 2.55 (DC) megawatt solar farm near Geneva, N.Y. producing energy for Hobart and William Smith Colleges (HWS).
Dynamic Energy used sale-leaseback financing for the project, which includes a Power Purchase Agreement and allows monetization of the tax benefits, inclusive of the investment tax credit and depreciation. In this solar tax lease structure, Dynamic Energy owns and operates the system and sells the power to HWS.
“By using a solar tax lease, Dynamic Energy is leveraging the tax benefits and available grants to make solar energy possible for HWS,” said Doug Beebe, vice president of energy finance for Key Equipment Finance’s Energy Solutions team, which provides leases tailored to the energy market. “The students who benefit from the energy produced by this solar farm may also learn about the important role financing plays in making these sustainable practices a reality, since HWS uses the solar project as a clean energy learning lab.”
HWS leases the land off Gates Road in the Town of Seneca for the 10-acre solar farm, which was completed in 2017 and features 7,800 solar panels. The project is being combined with a second solar farm completed in 2016 to generate about 5 megawatts of electricity, which provides about 50% of the educational institution’s electric needs.
“Dynamic Energy is proud to work with Key Equipment Finance to help Hobart and William Smith Colleges get closer to a goal of climate neutrality by 2025,” said Michael Perillo, CEO. “We congratulate HWS on expanding its notable sustainability efforts with solar farms. These initiatives set a national example of what it means to ‘go green’ in higher education.”
The combined solar farms represent one of the largest state-supported solar installations for a New York college or university.
“These sites are not only generating a significant amount of the colleges’ electricity,” said Thomas Drennen, professor of economics and environmental studies and chair of the entrepreneurial studies program at HWS, “but will also provide experiential learning and curricular opportunities for HWS students.”
The project was supported by a grant from the New York State Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), a statewide solar incentive program under Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to increase the number of solar electric systems across the state and meet the mandate for half of the state’s electricity to come from renewable energy sources by 2030. It also complements “Finger Lakes Forward,” the region’s economic blueprint aimed at attracting a talented workforce, growing business and driving innovation.
To learn more about solar financing solutions, visit www.keyequipmentfinance.com/partner/solar_financing.
About Key Equipment Finance
Key Equipment Finance has been in the equipment finance business for 44 years and is one of the largest bank-based equipment finance providers in the U.S. The company provides tailored equipment lease and finance solutions for commercial clients and government entities. Through its manufacturer and vendor alliances unit, equipment finance programs are developed for manufacturers, distributors and resellers.
Key Equipment Finance’s specialty finance group includes a specialty finance lending team, which provides structured facilities to various sectors of the specialty finance market, and a lease capital markets team to support corporations looking to optimize risk and revenue. Headquartered outside Denver, Colorado, Key Equipment Finance manages nearly $13 billion in assets and originates nearly $6 billion of equipment financing annually. For more information, visit http://www.keyequipmentfinance.com.
About KeyCorp
KeyCorp's roots trace back 190 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $137.7 billion at December 31, 2017. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, insurance, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,200 branches and more than 1,500 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications, and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.
About Dynamic Energy Solutions
Dynamic Energy is a full-service solar energy provider that brings together the diverse expertise needed to design, finance, build and maintain projects to meet the needs of commercial and institutional customers. With an in-house team that includes professional engineers, project managers, and master electricians, Dynamic Energy creates high-quality projects that reduce customer expenses, improve operating efficiency, provide an attractive return on investment and achieve sustainability goals. For more information, please visit www.dynamicenergyusa.com or call 1-877-809-8884.
About Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Hobart and William Smith Colleges are nationally recognized liberal arts colleges defined by a longstanding focus on educating across academic disciplines and an intellectual environment that cultivates faculty and student connections. With a strong commitment to inclusive excellence, the Colleges have a distinguished history of interdisciplinary teaching and scholarship, curricular innovation and exceptional outcomes. Hobart and William Smith provide robust programs in career development, study abroad, service, leadership and athletics. Originally founded as two separate colleges (Hobart for men in 1822 and William Smith for women in 1908), Hobart and William Smith students share the same campus, faculty, administration and curriculum.