Solar Developer Birch Creek Scales Up to Accelerate Future Growth

LOS ANGELES, March 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Birch Creek Development, LLC ("Birch Creek") is pleased to announce a significant investment in its leadership team as it moves to grow its footprint in utility scale solar and storage. Birch Creek, an industry leading renewable energy development platform, is adding to its already impressive expertise in the areas of solar development and project finance with the addition of new, key team members.

"This marks a critical stage in the growth of our company," said Dan Siegel, CEO of Birch Creek. "With 30 projects successfully developed since 2019 and nearly 5 GWs in the pipeline, we're focused on execution in what will be an exceptionally busy time ahead. That goal can only be achieved if we first invest in our team and I believe this group of highly-capable industry veterans will act as a cornerstone in that effort," Siegel said.

Among the recent additions, Jon Buttles joins Birch Creek as Chief Financial Officer. Buttles was CFO for Cypress Creek Renewables, LLC from 2014 to 2019, a critical period of scaling which led to significant growth. Max Whitacre has joined as Executive Vice President of Project Finance, bringing more than a decade of experience working in renewable energy. Whitacre previously held a similar role with Green Street Power Partners. Both join CEO Dan Siegel, formerly Senior Vice President of Renewable Energy at U.S. Bank and Chief Operating Officer Chris Norqual, formerly Vice President of Market Development at Cypress Creek, bringing depth of experience in developing, financing and owning utility scale solar projects.

"I'm thrilled to take part in this next phase of Birch Creek by applying my experience scaling development platforms to an opportunity that already has a track record, pipeline and world class team," said Jon Buttles, Birch Creek CFO. 

"With its robust pipeline and proven track record, Birch is uniquely positioned to make a meaningful impact on the renewable energy revolution currently underway. I'm proud to be joining such a talented team and look forward to helping accelerate Birch's growth and influence," EVP Max Whitacre said.

In addition, Birch Creek has also made important investments in its development and finance teams. Peter Bruno joins as Vice President of Development after spending seven years in various development roles with Cypress Creek. Dan Edelstein, previously Birch Director of Development, has also advanced into the role of Vice President of Development. Lisa Ladesich joins as Development Coordinator, previously at Pine Gate Renewables. Will Mihill joins as Vice President of Finance, previously at Twain Financial Partners. Allie King joins as In House Counsel after spending several years as an attorney with Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP and Dufour Conapinski Ha LLP focused on a range of business and financial transactions in the renewable energy industry.

Birch Creek, formed as a utility scale solar development platform in 2019, focuses on the development and financing of utility scale solar and storage projects in the United States. Since 2019, the company has placed 315 megawatts (MW) in service and recently completed financing for an additional 315MW. Birch Creek has 4.9 gigawatts (GW) of utility scale solar and storage pipeline in various stages of development across MISO, PJM, Texas and the Southeast. Birch Creek has 9 employees and is based in Los Angeles. 

Birch Creek Company Highlights

• Birch Creek Development ("Birch") is a utility-scale solar developer with 4.9 GW of active solar and storage development pipeline across MISO, PJM, Texas, and the U.S. Southeast
• Birch was founded in 2019 as a joint venture partnership between the founding members of Cypress Creek Renewables, Irradiant Partners, and Pine Gate Renewables
• Since inception, Birch has placed 28 projects in-service, totaling 315 MW. Birch recently completed NTP financing on an additional 6 projects, or 226 MW
• Birch is focused on the execution of near term greenfield and varying stage acquisition opportunities totaling more than 2 GW, while monetizing mature projects
• Birch has recently grown its internal team to 9 employees with extensive industry experience, while continuing to develop new strategic partnerships spanning project development, finance, EPC and O&M services

Media Contact: David Jones 
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Birch Creek Development, LLC