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LANDOWNERS

Turn your unused land into a cash annuity.

Unused land—even otherwise “unusable” land such as brownfields and landfills—can be turned into solar fields, generating electricity and making money for you month after month. With today’s reliable solar technology, your land can generate money for you for 20 years or more.

Project Success Assured

At Greenskies, we specialize in ground-mounted solar. We negotiate directly with off takers to afford you the best possible price for the energy generated by the solar system on your land.

Our experience with project development, underwriting, financing, legal and tax structuring, construction management, and operations increases financial value and decreases risk for your project. You won’t be left with a half-finished construction site that needs financing. With Greenskies, you can rest assured, your project will go live and you can reap the benefits of a cash annuity. We have the resources, skill and experience to partner with you over the life of the project, typically, 20-30 years.

See our FAQ below for more information about how the process works. We look forward to talking with you about your specific land and solar needs.

Landowner FAQ

At Greenskies, we know how to work with landowners to generate electricity and make money for your projects. Below are frequently asked questions by landowners as they consider solar projects.

WHAT IS A SOLAR FARM? 

An area of land where a large number of solar panels are set-up to generate electrical power.

WHAT IS A SOLAR LEASE AND HOW LONG IS THE AVERAGE TERM? 

A solar lease is a contract between the property owner and Greenskies that allows us to install a solar farm in exchange for payments to the landowner. Each contract is different, but generally they are at least 20 years and sometimes have an option to extend for an additional period.

WHAT IS DONE WITH SOLAR POWER PRODUCED ON A FARM? 

The power generated by the solar farm will be sold to your power grid. This could be a local co-op, large energy company, or individual company.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO GET A SOLAR FARM INSTALLED? 

With the current process involving city planning and permits, along with working through details of contracts, the process can take anywhere from 6 months to 3 years. During this time you’ll be free to continue using your land.

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR OPERATING AND MAINTAINING THE SOLAR FARM? 

Greenskies will be responsible for all operations and maintenance for the solar farm during its life, and will remove all equipment and reclaim your property once the project has ended.

DOES A SOLAR FARM AFFECT PROPERTY TAXES AND IF SO, WHO PAYS THOSE TAXES? 

While installing a solar farm generally increases property taxes, Greenskies will be responsible for all property taxes during the life of the solar farm.

HOW VISBLE IS A TYPICAL SOLAR FARM? 

We never want to impact the natural beauty of your neighborhood. Greenskies works with landowners on a case-by-case basis when designing the solar farm to minimize visual impact.

WHAT DO I DO IF THERE ARE DIFFERING OPINIONS WITHIN MY FAMILY OR WITHIN MY GROUP OF INVESTORS ABOUT HOW TO USE OUR LAND? 

Greenskies knows that working with family members or neighbors or a group of investors can get complicated. We have extensive experience in managing the interests of everyone involved and usually find a win-win situation for all parties.

WHAT WILL MY NEIGHBORS, COMMUNITY OR COUNTY SAY ABOUT HAVING A SOLAR FARM? 

As you know, everyone is different and we at Greenskies treat everyone the way we would want to be treated – like gold. Just as you are seeking answers to your questions, your neighbors and community are as well. We are here to help educate you and others that could be affected by the solar installation. Often, after an in-home meeting or town hall discussion, people walk away excited for the future that solar has to offer them.

WHAT IS CONSIDERED OPTIMAL LAND FOR A SOLAR FARM? 

Great solar sites come in all shapes and sizes, but generally need to be flat and free of water. In order to facilitate the sale of the power generated by the solar farm, an ideal property would be less than one mile from an existing power line.

I HAVE FULL GROWN TREES, BUSHES, OTHER CROPS, LIVESTOCK, OR WATER CURRENTLY ON MY LAND, WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO TO GET IT READY FOR A SOLAR FARM? 

We will work with you to determine if it makes sense to cut down or burn the trees or other crops, sell livestock or drain water currently on your site. It depends on your priorities and rest assured we will not recommend you do anything to your land until all prior permits and contracts are in place and the installation is scheduled to occur. We don’t want you to incur any unnecessary expenses or burden in the process.

I HAVE OFFERS FROM MULTIPLE DEVELOPERS, HOW DO I CHOOSE WHICH IS BEST FOR MY FAMILY? 

A lot of companies are jumping into the solar business. Some are in it for the long-term and care for their landowners and will be with them throughout the life of the lease. Some are “fly-by-night” operations looking to cash-in on the latest trend, without long-term interest in the solar business. Some companies will also take on a project and then “flip-it” similar to flipping real estate. Some questions to ask companies that approach you:

  1. How long have you been in business?
  2. How many installations have you done?
  3. How involved are you with the financing and development?
  4. If I were to work with you, where am I in the que for getting my solar farm installed compared to your other projects?
HOW DO I START A CONVERSATION WITH GREENSKIES ABOUT MY LAND AND SOLAR PROJECT OPPORTUNITY? 

Click here to contact us, we are happy to talk with you about your options.


For a free appraisal and land lease quote, fill out the form below.

Please include the following information about your parcel of land: State, Address or Coordinates, and Acreage.

About Greenskies Clean Focus

Greenskies Clean Focus offers a full suite of decarbonization solutions, including onsite and offsite solar, battery storage, microgrids, and CCHP. Our vertical integration delivers the most cost-competitive solutions for commercial, public sector, and utility energy users throughout the US. From beginning to end, our customers work with a single delivery team. Greenskies originates, develops, constructs, and operates, while Clean Focus finances and owns the systems. Since our founding in 2009, we have developed and constructed 340+ MW of renewable energy facilities across 640+ sites in 19 states. Solar Power World ranks Greenskies Clean Focus as the number one commercial solar developer in the Northeast and top three in the US, based on cumulative kW installed.

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West Building, Lower Level
North Haven, CT 06473

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150 W Iowa Avenue, Suite 104
Sunnyvale, CA 94086

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New York, NY 10018

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P +1 (860) 398-5408
E info@greenskies.com

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