BP, Once a Renewables Leader, Bets $200 Million on Solar
- 6 years ago
BP, Once a Renewables Leader, Bets $200 Million on Solar
BP said its $200 million investment would eventually give it a 43 percent stake in Lightsource, which will be renamed Lightsource BP,
and the energy giant will take two seats on the board.
BP, like other major European oil companies, is responding to pressure from investors
and governments, especially in the region, to shift away from the traditional fossil fuels blamed for climate change, like oil and gas, and into cleaner sources of energy.
Before the Gulf of Mexico oil spill hobbled the company, BP had been seen as a leader on environmental issues among traditional oil and gas companies.
In an interview, Dev Sanyal, chief executive of BP’s alternative energy business, said the company had chosen an ill-fated part of the solar
business: manufacturing equipment like solar panels, an area now dominated by Asian companies that are better able to compete on price.
He added that the attraction of Lightsource, which is privately owned, was
that it could be a vehicle for BP to take advantage of what he forecast as 10 percent to 15 percent annual growth in solar power in the coming years.
Under pressure to pay damages and fines from the Gulf of Mexico spill — which have cost it $64
billion so far — BP has been focusing until recently on improving its oil and gas operations.
On Friday, in what may be a move to repolish tarnished green credentials, the energy giant said
that it would spend $200 million to acquire a large stake in a Lightsource, a solar power developer based in Britain.
BP said its $200 million investment would eventually give it a 43 percent stake in Lightsource, which will be renamed Lightsource BP,
and the energy giant will take two seats on the board.
BP, like other major European oil companies, is responding to pressure from investors
and governments, especially in the region, to shift away from the traditional fossil fuels blamed for climate change, like oil and gas, and into cleaner sources of energy.
Before the Gulf of Mexico oil spill hobbled the company, BP had been seen as a leader on environmental issues among traditional oil and gas companies.
In an interview, Dev Sanyal, chief executive of BP’s alternative energy business, said the company had chosen an ill-fated part of the solar
business: manufacturing equipment like solar panels, an area now dominated by Asian companies that are better able to compete on price.
He added that the attraction of Lightsource, which is privately owned, was
that it could be a vehicle for BP to take advantage of what he forecast as 10 percent to 15 percent annual growth in solar power in the coming years.
Under pressure to pay damages and fines from the Gulf of Mexico spill — which have cost it $64
billion so far — BP has been focusing until recently on improving its oil and gas operations.
On Friday, in what may be a move to repolish tarnished green credentials, the energy giant said
that it would spend $200 million to acquire a large stake in a Lightsource, a solar power developer based in Britain.