Silver Lake nearly quadruples initial investment in SolarCity

Investment firm Silver Lake announced plans Wednesday to nearly quadruple the size of its initial stake in rooftop solar power giant SolarCity.

Silver Lake Kraftwerk, Silver Lake’s energy and resource innovation fund, has agreed to invest $100 million, while Elon Musk, SolarCity’s chairman, invests $10 million, and Lyndon Rive, SolarCity’s chief executive, contributes $3 million, Silver Lake said.

SolarCity’s stock rose almost 4% on the news to $27.02.

“We believe that SolarCity is a highly attractive long-term investment opportunity,” said Josh Raffaelli, managing director at Silver Lake Kraftwerk. “The company is already the leader in both commercial and residential solar.”

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SolarCity is the No. 1 provider of rooftop solar in the United States, and provides more than one out of every three new residential solar electricity systems. The company offers solar electricity directly to homeowners, businesses and government organizations for less than they spend on utility bills.

Twitter: @ivanlpenn

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