Project financing roundup: Clearway begins construction, Pivot Energy closes loan

Two large solar developers just locked in financing for big batches of solar projects, part of a broader wave of utility-scale solar construction happening around the country.

Clearway Energy Group closed $1.5 billion in financing for a 650 megawatt solar project in Bates County, Missouri, built on land once strip-mined for coal. Construction has started and is expected to run through mid-2028, with up to 500 workers on site at times. The power from this project is already spoken for under a 20-year contract with a tech company, not sold to local utilities or homeowners. A similar project is underway in Gibson County, Indiana, where developer Zelestra secured $350 million for a 203 megawatt solar farm also built on former coal land.

Separately, Denver-based Pivot Energy closed $173 million in financing for a portfolio of 51 smaller, community-scale solar projects totaling 135 megawatts spread across six states. This type of loan, called a takeout loan, pays off the short-term debt used during construction once projects are finished and running. Pivot says freeing up that money lets it start building more projects.

None of this financing involves rebates or programs homeowners can apply for directly. It is about how large solar companies pay for building power plants. But the growth of community-scale solar, like Pivot's smaller projects, can matter locally since some of these projects sell power to nearby communities or offer ways for residents to subscribe to solar energy without installing panels themselves. Whether that applies depends on what is available in your state.