While global corporate financing for solar fell to the lowest level since 2020 in 2025, the number of deals rose to the highest level since 2017. According to Mercom Capital Group, investors favored smaller, less risky, execution-ready projects last year amid policy uncertainty, trade pressure and higher financing costs.
Global corporate financing in the solar sector totaled $22.2 billion through 175 deals in 2025, according to data published by Mercom Capital Group in its Annual Report on Solar Financing and Mergers and Acquisitions 2025.
The total investment figure, which includes venture capital financing, public market financing and debt financing, fell 16% year-on-year, the lowest figure since 2020. However, the number of deals increased 11% year-on-year to 175, reaching a seven-year high.
Debt financing remained the sector’s largest source of capital, with $16.1 billion raised through 80 deals in 2025, up from $18.8 billion in 2024. Of this, the value of securitization transactions totaled $3.4 billion across nine deals.
Global venture capital and private equity funding reached $3.5 billion through 75 deals in 2025, down from the $4.5 billion raised last year but still covering 15 deals. Public market financing followed a similar trend, falling to $2.6 billion, the lowest level since 2019, but deal activity increased.
Raj Prabhu, CEO of Mercom Capital Group, noted that the number of deals has risen to the highest level in recent years as total capital raised has fallen and reflects a shift towards smaller and more selective transactions.
“2025 was a year of recalibration for the solar industry, shaped by policy uncertainty, trade and tariff risks, and higher interest rates that weighed on overall financing levels,” he explained. “Policy clarity in the second half of the year helped improve market visibility for investors and supported increased activity in lower-risk, ready-to-execute transactions.”
Prabhu added that another positive lesson from 2025 was the strength of corporate and project M&A activity. There were 96 company mergers and acquisitions in 2025, compared to 82 in 2024, an increase of 17% year-on-year. Downstream solar companies led the corporate mergers and acquisitions last year, acquiring 72 companies, followed by manufacturers with nine transactions and the rest of the systems companies with five.
Mercom’s report adds that rising electricity demand, particularly from data centers, continued to support downstream activity and utility-scale solar deployment through 2025. The number of large-scale acquisitions of solar energy projects increased by 13% last year, with 246 compared to 217 in 2024. Total acquired capacity decreased by 1%, from 37.7 GW in 2024 to 37.4 GW in 2025.
This content is copyrighted and may not be reused. If you would like to collaborate with us and reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
