How To Turn Solar Assets into Liquid, High-Return Investments

Introduction

Distributed Energy Resource (DER) projects are hitting their stride. The last two years have seen the rapid expansion of such projects as more and more companies seek out decentralized renewable solutions. Capacity is expected to double by 2027, and by 2030 DERs may provide up to 20% of grid capacity. Solar is leading the DER market and is serving as the foundation for DER growth. And while greenfield projects dominate headlines for growth, the potential of installed solar rooftop assets remains largely untapped. Many of these solar assets are underbanked, illiquid, or overlooked, yet they hold immense value for real estate owners seeking to optimize their financial returns.

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Market Insights

The rapid expansion of rooftop solar presents a major opportunity for real estate asset owners and investors looking to maximize financial returns:

• Australia: Rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) installations are projected to surpass 25 GW of installed capacity by the end of 2024, driven by corporate sustainability goals and rising electricity costs.
• USA: The U.S. solar market has exceeded 60 GW of installed capacity, with commercial real estate owners increasingly integrating solar into their energy strategies

Notably, the majority of these solar assets are owned by real estate companies, not third-party financiers. This means real estate CFOs and asset managers must navigate the complexities of optimizing financial returns, managing operational risks, and ensuring long-term value from their energy investments.

By unlocking the financial potential of these existing assets, Perl Street enables real estate owners to monetize their solar investments, standardize performance validation, and position their assets as attractive investments for buyers and aggregators.

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The Problem

Most installed solar assets are not achieving their full financial potential. Their performance is often unchecked or unverified against their initial projections, leaving asset owners and investors without a clear understanding of whether their systems are meeting expected returns. For real estate owners, these financial inefficiencies stem from limited visibility into system performance and an inability to optimize their assets for maximum profitability. Without the right tools to benchmark financial returns or access strategies for enhancing asset value, many owners leave money on the table.

Buyers and aggregators face significant challenges when evaluating these assets for acquisition, including discrepancies between engineering drawings and actual installations, incomplete system performance data, and a lack of standardized due diligence processes. As a result, many aggregators hesitate to acquire these systems despite their potential for strong returns when properly managed.

Perl Street ensures that asset owners and investors can benchmark their portfolios, verify system performance, and make data-driven decisions to unlock the full financial potential of their assets.

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The Solution: Perl Street’s Solar Marketplace

To unlock the financial opportunity that existing solar assets present, real estate owners and aggregators need a solution that goes beyond monitoring—one that validates system performance, optimizes assets for acquisition, and simplifies transactions. Perl Street provides that solution.

The Perl Street Solar Marketplace streamlines the onboarding, financial validation, and bundling of underperforming solar assets, turning them into investable opportunities. Using proprietary metrics and eco-bankability scores, it assesses and prepares assets for sale, ensuring they meet the standards and expectations of aggregators. By facilitating transactions, Perl Street bridges the gap between asset owners and aggregators, creating monetization opportunities for asset owners while delivering scalable, pre-validated acquisition opportunities for aggregators.

This approach benefits the DER ecosystem in several ways:

• Activates underperforming assets, ensuring they meet their financial and performance potential before acquisition.
• Simplifies the acquisition process for aggregators by standardizing due diligence and reducing transaction risk.
• Creates a scalable model for increasing assets under management (AUM), enabling long-term profitability.
• Optimizes assets pre-sale by integrating solutions such as battery storage and BMS technology through third-party partnerships, enhancing their value before they enter the market.

With Perl Street, solar assets are no longer just forgotten infrastructure—they are high-performing financial assets ready for acquisition and long-term investment.

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Key Benefits for Stakeholders

The Perl Street Solar Marketplace offers advantages for every key player in the DER ecosystem. The platform frees up new possibilities for asset owners, aggregators and service providers alike. Here’s how:

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For Asset Owners

Real estate owners gain access to an intuitive, self-service platform that transforms their solar assets into high-performing and liquid energy assets. Key benefits include:

• Real-Time Insights: Owners receive real-time access to solar generation data and financial performance tracking through easy-to-understand reports.
• Opportunities for Expansion: The platform facilitates offers for new energy solutions, such as batteries, EV charging stations, or demand response services.
• Enhanced Asset Value and Liquidity: Owners can monetize their energy assets by selling energy systems to DER aggregators for upfront fees and entering into Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs).

For DER Aggregators

Aggregators benefit from tools designed to accelerate growth and streamline asset acquisition. Highlights include:

• Scalable Growth: Increase AUM quickly and predictably by accessing a pool of pre-vetted, ready-to-buy redeveloped assets.
• Customizable Acquisition Parameters: Advanced pricing and due diligence capabilities allow aggregators to present purchase offers and acquire assets based on their investment criteria.
• Financial Management APIs: Built-in integrations with accounting/ERP, CRM, and Data Acquisition Systems to bring financial, operational, and customer data into one place, providing zero-effort reporting and reconciliation between accounting, invoicing, payments, and contracts.

For Service Providers

Service providers gain a direct connection to asset owners while benefitting from aggregated data insights. These advantages include:

• Market Expansion: Service providers can offer solutions such as energy storage, EV charging infrastructure, or demand response services through the marketplace.
• Data-Driven Targeting: Aggregated data allows service providers to optimize service delivery and tailor offerings to specific asset needs.
• Revenue Opportunities: Transactions facilitated through the platform generate marketplace fees, fostering a symbiotic relationship between solar installers and Perl Street.

Why This Matters

The Perl Street Solar Marketplace addresses inefficiencies in the DER ecosystem by turning undervalued and illiquid assets into valuable and liquid assets. It creates financial and sustainability benefits for all stakeholders. Real estate owners maximize economic benefits, aggregators accelerate growth, and service providers access a growing pool of data-driven opportunities. This all aligns with global goals to optimize renewable energy deployment.

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Conclusion

Millions of C&I and SME solar installations exist across the US and Australia. These installations are the foundation for creating the financial market for DER assets, unlocking more capital, and driving further deployment. Perl Street’s Solar Marketplace unlocks the potential of these assets.

It validates the performance of installed assets, identifies redevelopment to maximize financial returns, and offers asset financing and monetization opportunities. It provides renewable energy investors with pre-screened assets and data-driven insights to support investment decisions. Explore the platform to see how it connects real estate owners, aggregators, and service providers in one seamless, scalable ecosystem.

Ready to learn more? Schedule a demo to see how the Solar Marketplace can transform your portfolio.

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