Solar developer Eden Sustainable has secured £75 million in funding from renewable energy investment company, Thrive Renewables, to accelerate the roll out of solar energy. Eden Sustainable provides ‘private wire’ solar power purchase agreement (PPA) projects for schools, businesses, and other organisations, with no upfront capital investment required.

The deal means Eden now has the in-house capability to develop, construct, fund and operate solar assets. The facility was seeded with 15 schools.
Corporates may also choose to fund and own solar projects themselves. Eden recently completed an array on the roof of the Felixstowe Mega Distribution Centre for global logistics provider, Uniserv. The array is predicted to generate over 2,180,000kWh per year, 86% of which will be consumed on site.

Matthew Clayton, Managing Director of Thrive Renewables, said: “We believe that funding partnerships like this can help catalyse the industry, accelerating the delivery of vital new renewable energy capacity at the pace and scale needed for net zero. We’re excited to be partnering with Eden, a business that closely aligns with our ethos and values, helping fund its expansion plans that could see up to 75MW of new rooftop solar installed.

“This also supports our own ambitious growth goals, with the aim to double Thrive’s generation capacity within the next five years.”
A 2023 report by the countryside charity, CPRE suggested that installing solar panels on existing rooftops and other land could deliver 40-50GW in England alone.