Cathay leads Series C for China's Unisun Energy
Cathay Capital has led a Series C round of undisclosed size for Unisun Energy, a China-based green power service provider for industrial and commercial sites.
Source Code Capital re-upped. The proceeds will be used for developing and constructing power plants, R&D, manufacturing of integrated energy storage systems, and upgrades to intelligent operation, according to a statement.
Unisun offers a turnkey solution billed as an energy-as-a-service (EaaS) model. It designs, builds, owns, operates, and maintains systems for the long term, financing projects using its own capital. Customers are said to pay only for the energy consumed.
A typical project would involve the installation of a solar photovoltaics (PV) power generation facility on the roof of a factory. The power generated would then be used on site with a price discount to conventional power, with remaining power sold to the grid. The idea is to reduce energy costs and enhance corporate customers’ environment, social and governance (ESG) profiles.
Cathay sees distributed solar systems for commercial and industrial projects as a scattered and less standardized segment of the overall PV market with a low penetration rate. Household PV, by comparison, is regarded as already dominated by players such as Chint Anneng, Skyworth, and Trina Solar, while large-scale, centralised power plants are considered difficult targets for venture capital.
"Distributed energy represents the future of the new energy industry, and Unisun Energy is a leading distributed energy service provider with a stellar reputation in the industrial and commercial PV market and significant potential for future growth." said Zhao Jing, a partner at Cathay.
New energy remains a popular investment theme in China, with valuations rising on the back of a perceived halo effect from the country’s commitment to curbing emissions and achieving carbon neutrality. In June, PCG, a joint venture of Poly Capital and Country Garden Venture Capital that offers a similar service as Unison, received a Series A of CNY 500m (USD 69m).
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