HARTFORD, CT—(Marketwired – December 17, 2015) – CleanFund Commercial PACE Capital, Inc. (“CleanFund”), announced today the closing of the largest known Property Assessed Clean Energy (“PACE”) financing to date. The $8.4 million PACEDirectâ„¢ financing by CleanFund enables State House Square, one of Hartford's premiere, Class A office buildings, to significantly lower its energy and operating costs.Â
CleanFund, a nationwide provider of long–term financing for energy efficiency, water conservation and renewable energy improvements to commercial properties, originated, underwrote and closed the 25–year financing.Â
The Connecticut Green Bank (“Green Bank”), which established Connecticut's award–winning commercial PACE (“C–PACE”) program, served as the Program Administrator, enabling privately originated and funded C–PACE projects in Connecticut. Administrative standardization of C–PACE, as Green Bank has done, can accelerate the adoption of green energy more rapidly and make capital more readily available to commercial and industrial property owners.
Greg Saunders, CEO of CleanFund, noted, “This was a team effort involving a number of parties. We are pleased to have enabled State House Square to create lasting value for their property — and for their tenants — with these significant upgrades.”
“We are very pleased with how CleanFund quarterbacked the commercial PACE financing from beginning to end. They made the funding process easy for us,” said Dovy Fruchthandler, representing the building ownership group.
The improvement project involved the design and installation of a new central heating and cooling plant consisting of premium–efficiency chillers, natural–gas fired condensing boilers, steam boilers, cooling towers, and a plate–and–frame heat exchanger. The property has achieved nearly 90% cost savings by eliminating its reliance upon steam and chilled water purchased from a local utility.
“The project enabled a significant reduction in energy and operating costs,” Joe Euphrat, Managing Director at CleanFund explained, “with all parties pleased with the outcome. Additionally, we are excited that we received consent to place the property assessment from a major mortgage company.”
About CleanFund Commercial PACE Capital, Inc.
CleanFund Commercial PACE Capital provides long–term financing for energy efficiency, water conservation and renewable energy improvements to commercial properties. CleanFund's PACEDirectâ„¢ flexible financing program enables property owners to install modern energy and water technology with no up–front cost, increasing property cash flows and value. CleanFund provides capital using property assessed clean energy (PACE), a financing structure adopted in 32 states and the District of Columbia that allows property owners to repay investments for building upgrades and new construction via a new line item on their property tax bill. Commercial property owners are generally able to pass through some or all of the increase in property taxes to their tenants in a true “win–win” formula for generating lasting property value.
CleanFund is a direct capital provider focused exclusively on the commercial property sector. With significant expertise in commercial real estate, finance and energy engineering, CleanFund is uniquely capable of delivering capital efficiently across all jurisdictions in the U.S. with active PACE programs.
For more information, please visit www.CleanFund.com
About Connecticut Green Bank
The Green Bank was established by Connecticut's General Assembly on July 1, 2011 as a part of Public Act 11–80. This quasi–public agency superseded the former Connecticut Clean Energy Fund. The Green Bank's mission is to lead the green bank movement by accelerating private investment in clean energy deployment within Connecticut and to achieve economic prosperity, job creation and energy security throughout the state. As the nation's first full–scale green bank, the organization leverages public and private funds to drive investment and scale up clean energy deployment in Connecticut.
The Green Bank has leveraged its capital to stimulate private investment through C–PACE, enabling over $70 million in energy upgrades across Connecticut's commercial and industrial sector.Â
Please visit www.ctgreenbank.com.
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