By the Enerdatics Research Team. Data from Enerdatics Leap, queried 7 November 2026.
Short answer: To find solar projects for sale before an auction, watch the open deal pipeline, track which advisers have taken sell-side mandates, monitor late-stage projects and their owners, and read ownership changes as signals of the next sale. Enerdatics lists 223 open US solar opportunities as of 7 November 2026, and 77 of the 348 US solar deals it recorded since 2024 were identified without any public announcement.
How Enerdatics solves this
Enerdatics flags assets and platforms likely to come to market, from developer pipelines, ownership changes and stealth deal signals. Investors use it to reach sellers before a process starts. If you buy solar projects, Enerdatics lets you see a developer's late-stage pipeline and its recent sales together, so you can call the owner while the project is still a conversation instead of a teaser with twenty other names on the distribution list. Enerdatics tracks 1,316 late-stage US solar projects. Available through CoreData, Stack dashboards, Leap AI and API.
Key takeaways
- Enerdatics lists 223 open US solar opportunities as of 7 November 2026, of which 194 are confirmed and 29 rumoured.
- ERCOT has the most open US solar listings, with 80, followed by MISO with 32.
- Seventy-seven of 348 US solar M&A deals recorded since January 2024 were stealth deals that neither party announced.
- Late-stage projects are the main pool of future sales, with 1,316 recorded in the US.
- Sell-side adviser mandates often appear before a teaser goes out, so tracking advisers gives early warning of a process.
This guide is for investors, IPPs and funds that buy US solar projects and want to reach sellers before a broad auction sets the price. At the end you will have a repeatable routine for spotting projects early.
Step 1: Define exactly what you want to buy
A narrow mandate makes early sourcing possible. Write down stage, size range, power markets, offtake type and whether you accept co-located storage, which means a battery sharing the solar site and grid connection. Sellers respond faster to a buyer who can say yes quickly, and a clear box lets you filter thousands of records down to a short list.
Step 2: Watch the open pipeline every week
An opportunity is a project, portfolio or company that is reported as available for sale, investment or partnership before a deal is signed. Enerdatics' data shows 223 open US solar opportunities, 188 of them tagged as M&A opportunities.
ERCOT leads by a wide margin. Recent ERCOT listings include a 149 MW solar project and a 53 MWac solar project paired with 150 MW of storage, both added on 5 November 2026.
Check the pipeline weekly and act on new listings within days. Rumoured opportunities, where a sale is reported but not confirmed by the owner, are often the earliest signal you will get.
Power marketOpen US solar opportunitiesERCOT80MISO32Independent29PJM21CAISO15SPP11NYISO8ISO-NE6
Source: Enerdatics Leap, opportunities dataset, open pipeline as of 7 Nov 2026. Listings tagged with several markets count in each.
Step 3: Track sell-side adviser mandates
When an owner hires a bank or boutique to sell, the mandate often leaks before the teaser does. Among open US solar opportunities, Enerdatics records Marathon Capital on 4, Fractal Advisory on 3 and Plural on 3, while 8 list a confidential adviser. Knowing which firms are active lets you ask them directly to be included early.
Step 4: Monitor late-stage projects and their owners
Late-stage projects have advanced permits and grid studies but are not yet built. Enerdatics records 97 US solar deals for late-stage projects since 2024, twice the 48 for early-stage projects. Enerdatics records 1,316 late-stage and 1,760 early-stage US solar projects. Filter them by your box, then look at each owner's balance sheet and sales history.
Timing matters. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory reports that the median time from interconnection request to commercial operation exceeded five years for projects built in 2025. Owners carrying projects that long often need a partner before construction. For signals of which developers sell most often, see which developers are likely to sell their pipeline next.
Step 5: Read ownership changes and stealth deals as signals
A stealth deal is a transaction Enerdatics identifies even though neither buyer nor seller announced it. Since January 2024, 77 of 348 US solar deals in Enerdatics' records were stealth deals. A quiet sale can be an early sign that an owner is selling down its pipeline. Fengate's purchase of seven projects from Accelergen is one example, covered in how Fengate bought into Accelergen as well as its project pipeline.
Set alerts on the companies you care about so each new record reaches you. Our guide to tracking which assets your competitors are buying explains how.
Step 6: Approach the owner with a specific offer
Call with a clear ask: the project, your indicative value range, your timetable and your financing. Owners take bilateral offers seriously when the buyer has done the work and can close. For context on prices and structures, see our guide to US renewable M&A buyers, prices and deal structures.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I find US solar projects for sale? Open opportunity listings, adviser mandates and late-stage project databases are the main sources. Enerdatics lists 223 open US solar opportunities as of 7 November 2026.
What is an off-market solar deal? It is a sale agreed directly between buyer and seller without a broad auction. These deals often start from an early approach to an owner before an adviser is hired.
Which US power market has the most solar projects for sale? ERCOT, with 80 open US solar listings in Enerdatics' records. MISO is second with 32.
See which late-stage solar projects are not yet on the market. Ask Leap three free questions, answered from Enerdatics data. No sales call needed.
