Solar (PV) Power Plant - Project Finance Model (Excel XLSX)

BENEFITS OF THIS EXCEL DOCUMENT

1. Provides forecast and profitability analysis of a development and operating scenario for a Solar (PV) Power Plant.
2. Enable users to get a solid understanding of the financial feasibility of a Solar Power Plant project and to evaluate the return to investors.

ENERGY INDUSTRY EXCEL DESCRIPTION

This product (Solar [PV] Power Plant - Project Finance Model) is an Excel template (XLSX), which you can download immediately upon purchase.

In the ever-evolving landscape of renewable energy and climate action, harnessing the power of solar energy is both an environmental imperative and a strategic move to meet the growing demand for electricity.

Photovoltaic power stations, often referred to as solar parks, solar farms, or solar power plants, are large-scale grid-connected photovoltaic power systems (PV systems) designed for the supply of merchant power. They are differentiated from most building-mounted and other decentralized solar power because they supply power at the utility level, rather than to a local user or users. In other words, they play a vital role in this transformative journey by supplying utility-level power to the grid.

As these projects gain momentum with increasing investments and regional incentives, a well-structured financial model emerges as an indispensable asset, capable of propelling solar power plant projects towards success.

This Financial model presents a development and operations scenario of a Solar (PV) Power Plant detailing capex, opex, energy yield, tariff structures, and project financing. The model supports revenue forecasting, IRR analysis, and risk assessment, with flexible inputs for solar irradiance, degradation rates, and PPA terms. It provides a solid financial foundation for evaluating project feasibility and securing investment.

The structure of the template follows Financial Modeling Best Practices principles and is fully customizable.

Model Structure

•  Setup Assumptions
Production and Operations-related inputs, including Project Timing, Production Assumptions (Plant Capacity, Capacity Factor, Performance Ratio, Energy Probability, Plant Degradation), Revenue (PPA Terms and Tarriffs), Operating Expenses, Capital Expenditures and Financing through Equity, Debt, and Government Grants, Tax Benefits (ITC or Tax Free period)

•  Development Budget
Plant Development Assumptions including Land costs, Hard costs, Soft costs, Development Timing, and Development Cash Flow distribution (Straight-line, S-Curve)

•  Debt Schedule
Loan amortization Schedule of project's debt including an optional moratorium and interest-only (IO) period.  

•  Monthly & Quarterly Cash Flows
These 2 reports present all the operating cash flows of the project over monthly and quarterly periods. It allows users to control the timing and how the cash flows over that time.

•  Annual Cash Flow
A roll-up of the monthly cash flows into annual periods from Plant Development to Net Cash Flow after taxes. It includes also calculation of Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE), and Debt Service Reserves.

•  Performance Reports
The model includes Break-even Analysis, KPIs and Perfomance dashboard reports assisting users to monitor project's operations and profitability.

•  Project Returns
Report presenting project unlevered and levered returns (Pre-Tax & After-Tax IRR, MOIC, Cash Outflows, Inflows and Profits)

•  Investors' Returns Waterfall
A 3-tier IRR hurdle waterfall model to distribute proceeds between investors. The report provides inputs for up to 4 different LPs with different equity contribution percentages and up to 4 different GPs with different equity contributions and equity share percentages. The first tier distributes cash flow to the partners until the LPs has achieved some defined preferred return and received a full return of capital. Assuming the preferred return hurdle is hit in tier one, cash flow is distributed in tiers two and three based on a defined promote structure and hurdle rates as outlined by the user.

•  Project Executive Summary
A high-level summary of the project's key data, including:
•  Key Project Metrics (Project Timing, Production Metrics, Payback Period, LCOE, Free & Clear Return Ratio, Cash-on-Cash Ratio, DSCR)
•  Uses & Sources of Cash
•  Operations Summary (Revenue, Net Operating Income, Net Cash Flow)
•  Project Level Return Metrics (Unlevered & Levered)
•  Partnership (LP's & GP's) Level Returns Summary (IRR, MOIC, Cash Outflows, Cash Inflows, Profit)
•  Business Performance Dashboard

Instructions on the use of the model are included in the Excel file.

Help & Support

Committed to high quality and customer satisfaction, all our templates follow best practice financial modeling principles and are thoughtfully and carefully designed, keeping the user's needs and comfort in mind.
No matter if you have no experience or you are well versed in finance, accounting, and the use of Microsoft Excel, our professional financial models are the right tools to boost your business operations!
If you however experience any difficulty while using this template and you are not able to find the appropriate guidance in the provided instructions, please feel free to contact us for assistance.
If you need a template customized for your business requirements, please e-mail us and provide a brief explanation of your specific needs.

Source: Best Practices in Energy Industry, Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Integrated Financial Model Excel: Solar (PV) Power Plant - Project Finance Model Excel (XLSX) Spreadsheet, Profit Vision