Off Balance Sheet Solar & Energy Storage Financing for Commercial Real Estate
Fully financed solar, energy storage, and microgrid solutions for commercial real estate. EcoSmart owns the assets, captures the incentives, and delivers below-market energy costs under a long-term service agreement.
Off balance sheet financing.
Under a long-term energy services contract, EcoSmart functions as a private utility for the real estate asset, selling power at rates structured to be below prevailing utility tariffs. EcoSmart captures and monetizes applicable incentives, including the federal Investment Tax Credit, which can offset 30 to 40 percent of eligible project costs. Owners avoid capex and receive predictable, long-term energy costs that are insulated from utility rate volatility.
EcoSmart owns and finances the equipment. Owners buy the energy output, not the asset. This distinction matters for balance sheet treatment, lender review, and tax purposes. The service or power purchase agreement is structured to be lender-friendly, with terms that have been reviewed and accepted by institutional lenders across commercial real estate transactions.
Deployable across new construction and retrofit projects, with EcoNOC® providing continuous performance visibility, generation verification, and system optimization across the asset lifecycle. Net metering and utility interconnection are managed by EcoSmart as part of the service, reducing the operational burden on the owner or property manager.
Reduced Upfront Capex. No capital investment required, no debt added, and no balance sheet impact from the infrastructure itself.
Incentive Monetization. EcoSmart captures and monetizes applicable tax credits and incentives, including the federal Investment Tax Credit. These savings are reflected in the service agreement rate structure, passing economic benefit to the owner without requiring them to have tax credit appetite.
Predictable Operating Costs. EcoSmart service agreement rates are structured to remain below prevailing utility tariffs throughout the agreement term, either at a fixed discount or indexed to utility rates with a guaranteed spread. Owners receive rate certainty relative to the market, with built-in protection against utility price volatility.
Code & Compliance Alignment. On-site generation addresses mandatory generation requirements in markets where building codes require on-site renewable energy. EcoSmart provides a path to compliance without requiring owners to deploy their own capital or carry the asset on their balance sheet.
Energy-as-a-Service is a financing and delivery model in which EcoSmart owns, finances, and operates on-site solar, storage, and microgrid assets and delivers the output to the property under a long-term service agreement. The model works because rising utility rates, favorable solar equipment pricing, and increasing on-site generation requirements have made third-party owned generation economically compelling for commercial real estate owners minimizing any upfront capital requirement.
EcoSmart owns and operates the system and sells electricity to the owner at a per-kilowatt-hour rate for the term of the agreement. The rate is set below prevailing utility tariffs at execution and remains fixed or on a defined escalation plan throughout the term, providing long-term cost certainty.
EcoSmart owns and operates the system under a rate structure indexed to utility tariffs, with a guaranteed savings threshold maintained throughout the agreement term. As utility rates move, the owner's rate moves with them but always remains below market by a contractually defined margin.
EcoSmart leases the roof or other installation area from the owner, installs and operates the system, and pays the owner a lease payment for the duration of the agreement. The owner receives a revenue stream from otherwise unused space while EcoSmart manages all equipment, operations, and utility interactions.
Where applicable, EcoSmart captures and monetizes the federal Investment Tax Credit as part of the financing structure, further improving the economics of the service agreement for both parties.
A growing number of jurisdictions now require on-site renewable energy generation as a condition of building permit approval or occupancy, particularly for new construction and major renovation projects. These requirements are expanding geographically and increasing in stringency as state and local decarbonization targets tighten.
For owners and developers in affected markets, EcoSmart's off balance sheet financing solution provides a direct path to compliance. On-site solar and storage systems are designed and sized to meet applicable requirements, owned and financed by EcoSmart, and delivered without requiring the owner to carry the asset on their balance sheet.
The compliance benefit is additive to the economic benefit. Owners in mandatory generation markets receive both below-market energy costs and regulatory compliance from the same EcoSmart service agreement.
EcoSmart owns and finances the system. Owners meet mandatory generation requirements without deploying capital or adding to their balance sheet.
Service agreement rates are structured below prevailing utility tariffs from day one, delivering an economic benefit alongside the compliance benefit.
EcoNOC® monitors generation performance continuously, providing the verified output data needed for regulatory reporting and investor disclosure.