SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (SPI)

Company website 2020 Financial Report Stock Analysis

16.8

Megawatts

of solar projects owned and operated by SPI as of April 2021

600

Megawatts

of solar panels delivered to date

1400

Megawatts

of inverters sold to date

View Our Analysis

The Path to Drawdown: Solar PVs

Solving climate change and staying below 1.5ºC of global warming demands a wholesale shift away from fossil fuels and toward using 100% emissions-free sources.

The most powerful source of this clean energy is the sun. Photovoltaic or PV solar panels (the kind you see on rooftops) have emerged as the predominant way of capturing the sun's energy and turning it into electricity. This industry has been growing quickly: as of 2020, solar panels are the cheapest source of electricity in most places on earth.

Solar produces ~2% of global electricity today. According to Project Drawdown, to be on a path to remain under 1.5ºC of warming, utility scale solar will need to be generating a combined ~26% of global electricity by 2050.

To get there, the PV solar industry needs to keep massively scaling over the few next decades:

<::marker> 720 TWh of solar electricity was generated in 2019
<::marker> 28,200 TWh is needed by 2050
<::marker> That’s a CAGR of 12.56% from 2019 - 2050

Analysis from the IEA also predicts that, to reach a 100% clean electricity grid by 2050, annual solar panel manufacturing capacity will need to scale from 737 GW in 2020 to 4,956 GW in 2030 (p.198).

About

SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (stock ticker: SPI) provides PV solutions for business, residential, government, and utility customers. They also develop, own, and operate solar projects and sell the electricity they generate to power companies. Their subsidiary designs and develops electric vehicles and EV charging solutions. Headquartered in Kowloon, Hong Kong, they operate in several countries across the world.

SPI's Role in Drawdown

SPI has three core divisions, all of which offer Drawdown solutions. Their SolarJuice residential solar provides renewable energy system solutions for residential and small commercial markets.

The commercial solar division provides a full range of engineering, procurement and construction services to project developers, and owns and operates their own solar projects that sell electricity to the grid in the US, UK, and Europe. As part of this division, they have an aggregate of 53.49MW (p. 51) of solar PV projects and 5.45 MWh of energy storage projects.

Advancing the Drawdown solution of EVs and EV infrastructure is SPI’s third division - Edisonfuture / Phoenix Motor EV. This division offers medium-duty commercial EVs and is developing EV charger solutions, electric pickup trucks, electric scooters, and other EV products.

SPI: What We Like

We’ll update this section once SPI makes sustainability information available.

What We Want to See Improve

Sustainability Metrics

Although we applaud SPI’s core business, we don’t know much about the carbon footprint of their operations or supply chain. SPI hasn’t made any sustainability information available, and we want to see that change. An annually published sustainability report should include metrics for their direct and indirect GHG emissions and the amount of energy consumed by source.

Set Emission Reduction Targets

Once we know SPI’s carbon footprint, the next step is to see their targets for reducing this footprint. We’d like to see them set targets for cutting emissions ultimately to zero by the middle of this century.

Divest from Non-Renewable Subsidiaries

Some of SPI’s subsidiaries (p. 56) engage in business that’s immaterial to their core revenue or to Drawdown solutions. These include crypto mining hosting, hemp and CBD extraction and processing, and the processing of alfalfa and related agriculture products. While these sectors are promising in their own right, they don’t contribute to the fight against climate change. Given that the COVID-19 pandemic forced SPI to scale these businesses down, we want to see them divest from these operations and focus on providing solar PV and EV infrastructure.

Related Solar Energy Stocks in the Climate Index

View All Climate Index Stocks →

Allocated	Company	Description
2.00%	Enphase Energy (ENPH)	Enphase makes micro-inverters, which are critical components in making rooftop solar more efficient. It's a key solution to expanding rooftop solar
1.18%	SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG)	SolarEdge makes power optimizer, solar inverter and monitoring systems for rooftop solar. These are key equipment in making solar power more efficient
0.82%	First Solar (FSLR)	First Solar makes innovative solar panels from a single glass substrate, making it possible to make panels in one factory in 4.5 hours
0.76%	Sunrun (RUN)	Sunrun makes and installs residential solar energy systems. Solar is a crucial centerpiece of electrifying everything
0.36%	Daqo New Energy (DQ)	Daqo makes high-purity silicon that goes into solar panel. This is a critical ingredient in converting sunlight into electricity
0.36%	Sunpower (SPWR)	Sunpower offers residential and commercial solar power systems and solar storage. Rooftop solar PV is one of the keys to an emissions-free energy system
0.33%	Shoals Technologies Group, Inc. (SHLS)	Shoals makes all of the components necessary for solar PV systems to connect to the grid. They’re helping expand solar energy
0.31%	Sunnova (NOVA)	Sunnova provides residential solar and energy storage systems in the United States. Both are critical for electrifying the energy system
0.17%	Array Technologies, Inc. (ARRY)	Array Technologies offers machine learning-based solutions that track the sun so that solar PV systems can generate more electricity
0.17%	Jinko Solar (JKS)	Jinko Solar is the largest solar panel maker in the world and heavy investor in solar R&D. They’re a key player in expanding solar energy
0.16%	Canadian Solar (CSIQ)	Canadian Solar makes and ships solar panels all over the world. This is critical for electrifying everything
0.14%	Gibraltar Industries, Inc. (ROCK)	Gibraltar Industries makes the mounting racks for solar panels that are tailor-made for the buildings and fields where solar systems will be placed
0.07%	Azure Power (AZRE)	Azure Power develops solar power for central and state government utilities in India. Solar power is a key centerpiece of a zero-emissions energy system
0.07%	Maxeon Solar Technologies, Ltd. (MAXN)	Maxeon Solar Technologies makes solar panels and related solar system components worldwide - a critical piece in a zero-emissions energy mix of the future
0.05%	FTC Solar, Inc. (FTCI)	FTC Solar offers solar tracker systems so that solar PV systems can produce more electricity. Expanding solar energy is key to a decarbonized world
0.03%	Renesola Power (SOL)	Renesola Power develops utility-scale solar projects in over 10 countries. This is the type of effort needed to scale solar power to electrify the grid
0.02%	iSun, Inc. (ISUN)	iSun is one of the biggest commercial solar developers in the US. They’re a valuable contributor to expanding solar power
0.02%	Orbital Energy Group, Inc. (OEG)	Orbital Energy offers engineering, construction, and maintenance for utility-scale solar systems. They help expand solar power
0.02%	SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (SPI)	SPI Energy develops solar PV solutions for businesses, residential, government and utility customers. Expanding solar is key to a clean energy system
0.02%	Sunworks (SUNW)	Sunworks makes solar power systems for a wide range of markets. Solar is a key zero-carbon energy source

SPI Energy Co., Ltd. (SPI)

The Path to Drawdown: Solar PVs

About

SPI's Role in Drawdown

SPI: What We Like

What We Want to See Improve

Related Solar Energy Stocks in the Climate Index

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