(Repeats from late Tuesday, no change to text)
By Sarah McBride and Nichola Groom
SAN FRANCISCO/LOS ANGELES, Nov 20 (Reuters) – U.S. solar
systems installer SolarCity Corp expects to debut in the public
markets before the end of the year after suffering a delay due
to superstorm Sandy, according to a person familiar with the
offering.
The company, which filed with securities regulators for a
$200 million IPO in October, will begin its investor roadshow
after the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, the person said.
A spokesman for SolarCity would not comment.
SolarCity is being hailed as the alternative energy
industry’s most promising IPO candidate since electric car
company Tesla Motors Inc’s 2010 debut.
Like Tesla, which is widely regarded as the sector’s sole
public markets success story, SolarCity was founded by Paypal
billionaire Elon Musk.
The top U.S. installer of residential solar systems has
grown rapidly, largely because it allows customers to lease its
costly product by paying a monthly fee, avoiding the hefty
upfront costs of an outright purchase.
The list of publicly traded alternative energy companies has
until now been dominated by solar manufacturers that are
struggling with a global glut of panels that has sent prices
into a tailspin and weighed heavily on profits and share prices.
(Reporting By Sarah McBride and Nichola Groom; Editing by Bob
Burgdorfer)
