Nautilus Solar Energy has secured the backing of Virgo Investment Group for a management buyout of Nautilus from an investment affiliate of Starwood Energy Group Global.
As part of the agreement, Nautilus and Virgo will establish a dedicated finance vehicle to acquire and own distributed solar projects, as well as a funding facility for development and construction activities.
“The Virgo investment will allow Nautilus to further secure our robust position within the distributed solar development industry and gives us more flexibility to design, construct and manage our own assets while capturing growing demand,” said Jim Rice, CEO of Nautilus Solar Energy. “We are thrilled to have Virgo as equity and project funding partner. We look forward to working with Virgo as we expand Nautilus Solar’s footprint.”
Nautilus is a leading, full service solar solutions provider serving the commercial and industrial markets. Nautilus also offers a suite of asset management functions designed to enhance system performance, mitigate risk and protect value for solar asset owners.
It has constructed or managed over US$400 million in solar systems throughout the United States and Canada since its formation nearly a decade ago, representing over 100 megawatts in nearly 80 different projects.
“Our strategy at Virgo is to support growing businesses in attractive market seams such as distributed generation. I joined Virgo earlier this year because I was confident that we could find experienced managers with deep industry relationships, such as the Nautilus team, and support these operators with Virgo’s creative financial capital and experienced human capital,” said Eli Aheto, a Partner at Virgo who leads the Firm’s energy investments.
Eli Aheto, a partner at Virgo, will be appointed as a director of Nautilus. Perry Cole, also from Virgo, will act as a director and the chairman of the board.