Octopus acquires solar developer

Octopus Energy Generation has acquired solar developer and asset manager Zestec for an undisclosed sum.

Zestec has a pipeline of over 160MW of new UK solar energy which will be sold to the organisations hosting the solar panels via power purchase agreements (PPA). The company says this will allow everyone from SMEs to public sector organisations and large corporations to benefit from self-generated green power without footing the cost of the installation of the solar system.

Through a fund managed by Octopus’ generation arm, over 100 projects will be built by 2027, ranging from 100 kW to 7 MW.

This is the latest in a string of deals by Octopus, which has already invested in solar and storage developer Exagen, floating offshore wind developer Simply Blue, and onshore wind developer Wind2.

Zoisa North-Bond, chief executive of Octopus Energy Generation, said: “There’s a significant untapped opportunity in the UK to generate more cheap green power from businesses’ rooftops. This space is fast-growing and it’ll help bring more energy security and lower energy bills, all while allowing companies to reduce their carbon emissions.”

Simon Booth, chief operating officer of Zestec, said: “Having worked with the team at Octopus over the last two years, it has become clear that we have a shared ambition to scale in this exciting sector of the renewable energy market. Most importantly, there is a shared ethos, client focus and attention to quality that delivers the right outcomes for all.”

Octopus tech platform Kraken also made an acquisition this week as it snapped up Swiss firm Depsys and its ‘GridEye’ platform which provides analytics, data and real time monitoring, including fault management, power quality and power flow modelling to electricity distribution network operators.