NYGB initially provided a US$25.0 million term loan facility to PP to finance the deployment of fuel cell systems powering forklifts in distribution centers across NYS. This loan was expanded to US$45 million in 2017.The Facility will allow PP immediate access to needed capital that is currently held as cash collateral in restricted accounts, rather than waiting for it to be released over time as payments are made through sale-leasebacks arrangements with tax equity providers. NYGB’s participation in this transaction is significant because it enables PP to deploy more systems and convert more forklift fleets in a shorter amount of time than would otherwise be possible under their current financial arrangement.
This transaction constitutes NYGB’s first investment in the fuel cell industry, which is still relatively small nationally but growing at an above-market average rate. As a result, many firms in the industry experience high borrowing costs. NYGB participation in the transaction aims to address those high costs for PP and other similar companies in the sector by making otherwise restricted capital available to PP, so they can continue scaling their business, including to the levels where capital costs are expected to be significantly reduced.