Wiki-Solar’s latest Ranking of utility-scale solar project developers shows that only six renewable energy experts are in the top 20.
NextEra Energy now tops both lists. According to Wiki-Solar’s Philip Wolfe, this is “especially thanks to the recent strong ‘solarization’ of its subsidiary, Florida Power & Light. Just six years ago, NextEra was down at No. 6, but it’s climbed one spot every year since.
Independent renewable energy developers are led by Canadian Solar and First Solar, ranked fifth and sixth. India’s ACME Solar follows in ninth place and US-focused Cypress Creek in 14th place.
Wiki-Solar lists Lightsource, which is ranked 17th, as a renewable energy company, but BP now has a significant share of it. The last of the six is ​​a legacy of projects left by the now defunct SunEdison.
Five other clean renewable companies made the top 30 – China’s JinkoSolar and Europe’s BayWa re. In addition, Neoen, FRV and X-Elio each have a cumulative capacity of at least 2 GW (AC).
In the list of electric solar power owners, China’s State Power Investment Corp. (SPIC) is in second place, and five other Chinese companies are in the top 20.
Europe is led by Enel, which ranked third, but EDF, Engie and Iberdrola are also all at the top of the list. India comes in at number 4 with Adani, and NTPC and Azure are also listed. AES, Dominion and Duke Energy represent the US alongside NextEra.
“Commodity-scale solar projects are getting bigger, with the largest now being measured in gigawatts,” Wolfe said. “Few but large multinationals have the financial strength to undertake projects of this scale, so we expect their dominance to continue.”
The only renewable companies in the top 20 IPPs/owners are JinkoSolar and Lightsource BP. There are also three infrastructure investors, led by Global Infrastructure Partners at No. 19, with DE Shaw Renewable Investment (DESRI) and Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway below.
