Oil giant BP increases stake in PV developer Lightsource

• British Gas and Oil supermajor BP announced it increases its stake in solar developer Lightsource BP in an effort to help accelerate the organization's growth and its aspirations to develop 10GW of renewable energy assets by the end of 2023.

British Gas and Oil supermajor BP announced it increases its stake in solar developer Lightsource BP in an effort to help accelerate the organization's growth and its aspirations to develop 10GW of renewable energy assets by the end of 2023.

Lightsource was set in 2010 as Lightsource Renewable Energy and built itself up as one of Europe's top solar developers. In December of 2017 the firm announced they would combine with BP to create a strategic partnership that would unite Lightsource's solar development and management experience with BP's global scale.

BP obtained a 43% equity share in Lightsource for a total consideration of $200 million, to be paid over three years, and the business was renamed Lightsource BP. It has financed its first significant project in Australia, a 200MW solar project near Wellington, which has begun building.

In the 2 years since BP and Lightsource combined forces, Lightsource BP has expanded its footprint from five to thirteen countries and has signed significant projects across Europe, the Americas, and Australia, building a development pipeline in excess of 12GW.

Fast-forward almost two years to the day and BP and Lightsource BP have declared that BP will increase its share of the organization to a simplified 50:50 joint venture arrangement. BP will buy newly-issued equity in the company and become an equal partner in the business with the balance of stocks continuing to be held by staff and management.

Significantly, because new shares are being issued in this trade, BP's investment will be immediately accessible to the business – nonetheless the Specific details of this trade aren't being published.