SolarCity has closed a new tax equity fund to finance over US$131 million in residential, commercial and military solar projects. The financing partner was not disclosed. The fund covers the capital cost of solar equipment and installation, making it possible for many homeowners to pay less for the power the systems produce than they pay for electricity from the local utility.

"This is the second tax equity fund we've closed during the first quarter as we continue our cash generation post–ITC extension and plan to continue our momentum," said Radford Small, SolarCity's Executive Vice President, Capital Markets.

The solar industry installed more than  GW in 2015, the largest annual total ever and 16 percent above 2014, according to the newly released GTM Research U.S. Solar Market Insight 2015 report.