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Lease Pass-Through Financing Obligation
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2020
Leases [Abstract]  
Lease Pass-Through Financing Obligation

Note 18 – Lease Pass-Through Financing Obligation

Through December 31, 2020, we had entered into eight transactions referred to as “lease pass-through fund arrangements”. Under these arrangements, our wholly owned subsidiaries finance the cost of solar energy systems with investors through arrangements contractually structured as master leases for an initial term ranging between 10 and 25 years. These solar energy systems are subject to lease or PPAs with customers with an initial term not exceeding 25 years. These solar energy systems are included within solar energy systems, net on the consolidated balance sheets.

The cost of the solar energy systems under lease pass-through fund arrangements as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 was $1.05 billion. The accumulated depreciation on these assets as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 was $137 million and $101 million, respectively. The total lease pass-through financing obligation as of December 31, 2020 was $68 million, of which $41 million is classified as a current liability. The total lease pass-through financing obligation as of December 31, 2019 was $94 million, of which $57 million was classified as a current liability. Lease pass-through financing obligation is included in accrued liabilities and other for the current portion and other long-term liabilities for the long-term portion on the consolidated balance sheets.

Under a lease pass-through fund arrangement, the investor makes a large upfront payment to the lessor, which is one of our subsidiaries, and in some cases, subsequent periodic payments. We allocate a portion of the aggregate investor payments to the fair value of the assigned ITCs, which is estimated by discounting the projected cash flow impact of the ITCs using a market interest rate and is accounted for separately. We account for the remainder of the investor payments as a borrowing by recording the proceeds received as a lease pass-through financing obligation, which is repaid from the future customer lease payments and any incentive rebates. A portion of the amounts received by the investor is allocated to interest expense using the effective interest rate method.

The lease pass-through financing obligation is non-recourse once the associated solar energy systems have been placed in-service and the associated customer arrangements have been assigned to the investors. In addition, we are responsible for any warranties, performance guarantees, accounting and performance reporting. Furthermore, we continue to account for the customer arrangements and any incentive rebates in the consolidated financial statements, regardless of whether the cash is received by us or directly by the investors.

As of December 31, 2020, the future minimum master lease payments to be received from investors, for each of the next five years and thereafter, were as follows (in millions):

 

2021

 

$

41

 

2022

 

 

33

 

2023

 

 

26

 

2024

 

 

18

 

2025

 

 

27

 

Thereafter

 

 

423

 

Total

 

$

568

 

 

For two of the lease pass-through fund arrangements, our subsidiaries have pledged its assets to the investors as security for its obligations under the contractual agreements.

Each lease pass-through fund arrangement has a one-time master lease prepayment adjustment mechanism that occurs when the capacity and the placed-in-service dates of the associated solar energy systems are finalized or on an agreed-upon date. As part of this mechanism, the master lease prepayment amount is updated, and we may be obligated to refund a portion of a master lease prepayment or entitled to receive an additional master lease prepayment. Any additional master lease prepayments are recorded as an additional lease pass-through financing obligation while any master lease prepayment refunds would reduce the lease pass-through financing obligation.