![]() It’s not just meeting SolarCity’s aspirations that are at stake. Given that the company has just over 60,000 customers in 14 states and the District of Columbia, that’s a big jump. The company has set a goal of installing solar at 1 million customers in the U.S. Lyndon Rive can’t afford to slow down, though. Removing the upfront capital investment of going solar, coupled with falling equipment costs, has helped fuel rapid growth in residential solar the past few years. SolarCity's success with this business model, first done in the commercial solar market, has propelled the San Mateo, Calif.-based company from a scrappy startup to a public company with the leading market share in solar financing. For consumers, part of the appeal is getting clean, renewable energy, but they also reduce their monthly electricity bills in the process. Financing comes from banks or other institutions, which fund the installation and earn a return over the life of the contract. Rather than buy solar gear, consumers purchase the electricity generated by solar panels or pay a monthly fee. On July 4, 2006, the Rive brothers co-founded SolarCity to offer what could be called solar as a service. And if it's green and cheaper than the alternative, they'll want it even more. What people really want is energy to power their homes. ![]() People don't necessarily want to own solar equipment and, because it’s so expensive, only wealthy people could afford it, they reasoned. 14-17 in San Francisco.īack in the mid-2000s, there were basically two ways to make money in solar: Manufacture solar panels or install them.Īt the time, Lyndon Rive and his brother Peter, two South African transplants to Silicon Valley, saw things differently. This profile is part of a series featuring presenters from the VERGE conference Oct.
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