Solar financing marketplace will use funds to make solar loans accessible to more homeowners across the U.S.

Sungage Financial, a marketplace that provides homeowners with easy, online access to low-cost financing for solar energy systems, today announced that it has received a $700,000 award from the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative. With the goal of making the abundant solar energy resources in the United States more affordable and accessible, the SunShot Initiative selected 20 innovative companies from hundreds of applicants. The award, announced today at Solar Power International in Las Vegas, Nevada, will enable Sungage to offer its secured solar loans to more homeowners across the country.

Sara Ross, CEO and co-founder of Sungage, said: "We are very happy to announce that Sungage is the recipient of the SunShot award. This support and recognition by SunShot will help us work with more installation partners and homeowners across the country to achieve our goal of making solar ownership more accessible and affordable."

Growth in the residential solar market has been largely driven by the expansion of the third-party ownership or leasing model. Sungage was an early innovator in an alternative approach that enables homeowners to capture the value of solar ownership through simple loan financing. With the industry's first secured solar loan, Sungage treats the solar energy system as the collateral. The Rocky Mountain Institute, a thought leader in the sustainability space, called Sungage's innovative approach "crucial to solar's future."

Following successful pilots of its innovative loan in Massachusetts and Connecticut, Sungage recently announced plans to rapidly expand to new markets through a $100 million residential solar loan program with Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU). Support from SunShot will complement the DCU partnership by enabling Sungage to rapidly expand its platform to ensure broad access to low-cost solar financing in active solar markets.

About Sungage Financial
Sungage Financial is a marketplace that provides homeowners with easy, online access to low-cost financing for solar equipment. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Sungage partners with leading solar installers and institutional investors to help homeowners save money on energy. An innovator in solar finance, Sungage launched the nation's first secured solar loan program in Connecticut in 2013. The company is committed to helping homeowners save more through ownership. For more information, please visit www.sungagefinancial.com.

About The SunShot Initiative
The U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative is a collaborative national effort that aggressively drives innovation to make solar energy fully cost-competitive with traditional energy sources before the end of the decade. Through SunShot, the Energy Department supports efforts by private companies, universities, and national laboratories to drive down the cost of solar electricity to $0.06 per kilowatt-hour. Learn more at energy.gov/sunshot.