BlocPower Raises $155M To Boost Property Electrification Conversions
New York City–based startup BlocPower has raised $155M in new financing to expand its building electrification and heat pump programs in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods to convert fossil fuel users to electric.
The funding comes as more cities and states prepare for moves to electrification for in-home heating and cooking. New York City's ban on gas stoves in new buildings kicks in this year for lower-rise structures.
The $155M raise in new debt and equity financing will translate to the conversion of 1,000 and 5,000 buildings, affecting between 1,000 and 10,000 families, BlocPower CEO Donnel Baird told Canary Media, a nonprofit news source covering the transition to electrification.
The funding includes more than $24M of Series B corporate equity led by VoLo Earth Ventures and $130M in debt financing led by Goldman Sachs. BlocPower uses debt financing to offer replacement building appliances at a low cost or no cost to building owners, who in return make monthly payments to the company.
The influx of funding and subsequent expansion of its efforts will create the need for BlocPower to hire and train roughly 3,000 new employees, a challenging feat as electricians are in short supply. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found there will be roughly 80,000 new electrician openings per year in the near future, Bisnow previously reported.
BlocPower has already used its "software and services" model, which includes a proprietary software, to convert 5,000 residential and commercial buildings across the country that previously used fossil fuels like natural gas to heat their buildings, according to Canary Media.
