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Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital

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FY2020 Annual Report · Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital
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H A N N O N   A R M S T R O N G   |  2 0 2 0  A N N U A L  R E P O R T

C O M P A N Y  
O V E R V I E W 

Hannon Armstrong is the first U.S. public company 
solely dedicated to investments in climate 
solutions, providing capital to leading companies 
in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and 
other sustainable infrastructure markets.

O u r   V i s i o n
Every investment improves our climate future.

O u r   P u r p o s e
Make climate positive investments 
with superior risk-adjusted returns.

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTC O N T E N T S

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LETTER FROM THE CE O

RECENT   HIGHLIGHTS

GROW TH HI GHLIGHTS 

INVE STME NT SP OTLIGHTS

AWARD S & RECO GNITI ON

SUSTA INABILITY RE PORT  CARD

LEAD ERSHIP

FORM  10 -K

  Investment in Tinkers Creek Stream 
Stabilization & Restoration Project located in 
Prince George's County, Maryland.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTL E T T E R  F R O M 
T H E  C E O

of  our  response  to  the  pandemic,  we 
focused on the health and well-being of our 
team and also made significant corporate 
donations to local organizations addressing 
critical issues of homelessness, hunger and 
domestic violence. As the year progressed, 
team discussions focused on how we can 
do more. As a result of these efforts, we 
created the Hannon Armstrong Foundation 
to identify the intersection of climate change 
and social justice and determine how best 
to engage with our community. This flowed 
from an organic expression of shared values 
that fits naturally within our culture of fierce 
curiosity and rigor about outcomes in climate 
investing.  We  have  declared  an  initial 
“Social Dividend” to the Foundation of $1 
million. I look forward to reporting on the 
Foundation’s activities in next year’s letter. 

The social aspect of ESG has also come 
front and center in our recruitment, hiring and 
training efforts. While change takes time, 
we have used 2020 to develop a human 
capital management strategy designed to 
improve data collection, establish reporting 
metrics, and enhance transparency related 
to the material aspects of our human capital 
activities. As a result of these efforts, we 
expect to benefit from material and ongoing 
changes in the diversity of our staff. You will 
also notice enhanced disclosures on human 
capital in our 2020 Form 10-K. Over time, 
our goal is to continually provide you the 
data to hold us accountable for progress on 
this front. 

With  the  Biden  administration,  we  have 
continued our political engagement to build 
support  for  the  enactment  of  economy-
wide carbon pricing, ideally in the form 
of  a  fee  and  dividend.  We  believe  the 
dividend should be structured to eliminate 
the cost impacts on lower-income families 
and to advance environmental justice. This 

Dear Stakeholders:

2020 was an exceptional year of growth and impact at Hannon Armstrong. Notwithstanding 
the pandemic, we posted record Distributable Earnings, transaction volumes, and carbon 
mitigation impact. At the same time, we grew as an organization, in part, by recognizing how 
the needs of the community intersect with investing in climate solutions.

2020 was also a year of tragedy, as the pandemic took its unspeakable toll on the health 
and livelihoods of millions while several incidents highlighted the urgent need for social justice. 
However, it was also the year when climate change went mainstream. 

In last year’s letter, which was published before the outbreak of COVID-19, I focused on 
questions owners of capital must ask themselves if we are to seriously address the climate 
crisis – particularly, how efficiently capital is being deployed to reduce carbon. I believe those 
questions, paired with my 2018 letter advocating for a carbon fee and dividend plan, form a 
powerful combination of ideas to accelerate the adoption of climate solutions. 

For the last fifty years, many companies have closely adhered to the Friedman Doctrine, 
named after the Nobel Prize-winning economist, who argued that a company’s sole purpose 
is to generate profits for shareholders. But for today’s workforce and an increasing number of 
investors, this doctrine is not only unambitious and unattractive, it is wholly inadequate. With 
a mission of investing exclusively in climate solutions since we became a public company, 
Hannon Armstrong embodies a broader ethos – one that recognizes our role as a responsible 
corporate citizen while continuing to produce outstanding financial results. Undoubtedly, 2020 
also broadened our ambition to find ways to incorporate social justice into our business. 

As a pioneer in climate solutions investing, we are proud of the Environmental, Social and 
Governance (“ESG”) reputation we have built. Yet 2020 has shown we can and must do 
more to expand our leadership role in both our local community and nationwide. As part 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTL E T T E R  F R O M   T H E  C E O

since our public debut in 2013. Last year, we 
achieved not only record financial results, but 
also the highest carbon reductions since our 
IPO. Our 2020 investments will reduce five 
times more carbon than our investments in 
2019, and with a CarbonCount® of 1.03, 
2020 has turned out to be the most efficient 
use of capital to reduce carbon in our history 
as a public company.

While I thank you for investing in Hannon 
Armstrong,  we  all  should  thank  the 
professionals at Hannon Armstrong, including 
our Board of Directors, who executed in 
2020 under the most difficult circumstances 
and yet had enough passion to help this 
company grow in its awareness of how it 
can contribute to social justice in addition 
to positively affecting climate change. I am 
inspired and honored to work alongside 
this team every day, but never more than 
in 2020.

Respectfully,

Jeffrey W. Eckel
Chairman & CEO
March 2021

market-based solution has the potential both 
to accelerate climate solutions at the pace 
required and improve economic and social 
equity so that disadvantaged communities 
are  not  left  behind  in  the  transition  to  a 
cleaner, healthier, and fairer economy. 

2020 Review and Outlook for 2021

My father told me there are only three ways 
to make money: sell more, raise your price 
or lower your costs. In 2020, we did all 
three. We closed on a record $1.9 billion in 
transactions, up from $1.3 billion in 2019, 
preserved  our  asset  yield  despite  falling 
market  rates,  and  significantly  reduced 
our cost of capital. That timeless formula 
produced record earnings of $1.55 per 
share which exceeded our previous three-
year guidance.

•  Much of the increase in transactions was 
accounted for by two large programmatic 
partnerships.  These  large  portfolio 
transactions  were  preceded  by  much 
smaller  transactions  with  these  clients, 
which demonstrated to these firms how 
our  focus  on  solving  client  problems 
was  accretive  to  their  businesses. We 
also continued to enjoy success in the 
smaller niches in our three core markets: 
Behind-the-Meter, Grid-Connected, and 
Sustainable Infrastructure. 

•  At year-end 2020, our unlevered portfolio 
yield held steady at 7.6%, despite the 10-
year U.S. Treasury falling to almost 0.90%. 
With a long-duration portfolio substantially 
comprised of non-prepayable, strong credit 
profile investments, we have locked in 
stable and recurring income for more than 
a decade. 

•  We significantly lowered both our cost 
of debt and equity capital. The coupon 
rate on our corporate green bonds has 
dropped from 5.25% in 2019 to 3.75% 
in 2020. Similarly, our share price and 
forward-looking dividend yield indicate a 
cost of equity that has never been lower. 
As a result, we have been able to improve 
our Distributable ROE to 10.7%, marking 
the fifth straight year it has exceeded 10%.

We  are  well-positioned  for  2021.  We 
believe we will realize the full year benefit of 
funding the balance of our 2020 transactions 
plus additional investments that are funded in 
2021. The impact is expected to be reflected 
in higher Net Investment Income and ultimately 
higher Distributable Earnings. As such, we 
have issued new guidance for the 2021 
to 2023 period of 7% to 10% compound 
annual  growth  in  Distributable  Earnings, 
higher than the 7% compound annual growth 
we achieved in the prior three-year period. 
This signals the accelerated growth we expect 
in this robust climate solutions market as our 
client base of the world’s leading energy 
and infrastructure companies continue their 
expansion. In fact, our clients’ ambition is the 
principal driver for the growth in our 12-month 
pipeline to more than $3 billion of investment 
opportunities.

Conclusion

Our investment thesis is simple: in a world 
increasingly defined by climate change, 
we will earn superior risk-adjusted returns 
making only climate positive investments. 
We have significantly outperformed virtually 
all broader market and peer group indices in 
the last year, the last five years, and indeed 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTR E C E N T  
H I G H L I G H T S

Key Performance Indicators

Key Performance Indicators

GAAP

Distributable1

GAAP

Distributable1

EPS

NII

Portfolio Yield1

Balance Sheet Portfolio

Managed Assets1

Debt to Equity Ratio

Distributable ROE2

Transactions Closed

New Guidance1

FY20

$1.10

$1.55

$29m

$88m

7.6%

$2.9b

$7.2b

1.8x

10.7%

$1.9b

FY19

$1.24

$1.40

$38m

$82m

7.6%

$2.1b

$6.2b

 1.5x

10.5%

$1.3b

FY20

1.03

3

FY19

0.30

Incremental Annual Reduction 
in Carbon Emissions

~2.0m MT

~385k MT

4

FY19

293

FY20

303

Incremental Annual Water Savings

~576 MG

~381 MG

Distributable Earnings per Share

Dividends per Share

CAGR (2021 – 2023)
7% - 10%

$2.06

$1.98

$1.90

Actual (2017 – 2020)
CAGR: 7%

$1.55

Previous
Guidance

CAGR (2021 – 2023)
3% - 5%

$1.57
$1.53
$1.49

Actual (2017 – 2020)
CAGR: 1%

$1.36

$1.27

2017

$1.38

2018

$1.40

2019

$1.55

2020

2021

2022

2023

$1.32

2017

$1.32

2018

$1.34

2019

$1.36

2020

2021

2022

2023

1) See the Non-GAAP Financial Measures section of our 2020 Form 10-K for an explanation of Distributable Earnings, Distributable Net Investment Income, Portfolio Yield, and Managed Assets, 

including reconciliations to the relevant GAAP measures, where applicable.

2)  Distributable ROE is calculated using distributable earnings for the period and the average of the ending quarterly equity balances in 2020 and 2019. 
3)  CarbonCount® is a scoring tool that evaluates investments in U.S.-based energy efficiency and renewable energy projects to estimate the expected CO2 emission reduction per $1,000 of investment.
4)  WaterCountTM is a scoring tool that evaluates investments in U.S.-based projects to estimate the expected water consumption reduction per $1,000 of investment.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT  
   
G R O W T H  
H I G H L I G H T S

Managed Assets1

Distributable NII1

$7.2b

$6.2b

17 %

CAGR
CAGR

$3.9b

$5.3b

$4.7b

$88m

$82m

15%

CAGR

$48m

$68m

$62m

$1.6

2016
2016

$2.0

2017
2017

$2.0

2018
2018

$2.1

2019
2019

$2.9

2020
2020

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

 Balance Sheet Portfolio   

 Off Balance Sheet   

 Off Balance Sheet
 Balance Sheet Portfolio

Portfolio Yield1 and Distributable ROE2

Transaction Volumes

10.1%

10.2%

11.1%

10.5%

10.7%

$1.3b
5yr Avg

$1.9b

$1.3b

$1.2b

6.2%

6.1%

6.8%

7.6%

7.6%

$1.1b

$1.0b

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

 Portfolio Yield   

 Distributable ROE

1)  See the Non-GAAP Financial Measures section of our 2020 Form 10-K for an explanation of Distributable Net Investment Income, Portfolio Yield, and Managed Assets, including reconciliations 

to the relevant GAAP measures, where applicable.

2)  Distributable ROE is calculated using distributable earnings for the period and the average of the ending quarterly equity balances in 2020 and 2019.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
 
 
I N V E S T M E N T 
S P O T L I G H T S

GRID-CONNECTED

BEHIND-THE-METER

BEHIND-THE-METER

$663m

CARBONCOUNT®: 1.06

Preferred  equity  investment 
w i t h   C l e a r w a y   E n e r g y   i n 
a 2.0 GW portfolio of contracted, 
grid-connected  wind,  solar, 
and solar-plus storage projects, 
located across four states, with 
predominantly investment grade 
counterparties  and  a  weighted 
average contract life of 14 years. 
Our  first  grid-connected  solar-
plus-storage  investment  brings 
continued programmatic deal flow 
with a large, ambitious partner 
focused on the U.S. market.

$93m

CARBONCOUNT®: 0.27

Preferred equity investment with 
ENGIE in a 78 MW distributed 
generation portfolio of contracted, 
community  and  commercial  & 
industrial  (C&I)  solar  projects, 
including those with co-located 
storage, located across multiple 
states  and  with  a  weighted 
average  24-year  fixed  price 
contract life. The unique investment 
structure  leverages  tax  equity 
financing to bring efficiency to a 
forward flow of projects.

$115m

CARBONCOUNT®: TBD

Preferred  equity  investment  in  a 
Public-Private Partnership (P3) with 
the University of Iowa to operate, 
maintain, and upgrade university 
energy and water utilities in support 
of low-carbon campus sustainability 
objectives. Backed by 50 years 
of  contracted  cashflows  with 
an investment grade counterparty, 
the investment represents a further 
expansion into the sizeable higher 
education P3 market. As upgrades 
are implemented, we anticipate the 
CarbonCount® of this investment to 
be meaningfully positive.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTAWA R D S 
& R E C O G N I T I O N

Recently, we have been honored and recognized by independent organizations around the world for our leadership on 
sustainable investing and ESG, including the below:

AWA R D S

Institutional Investor

R A N K I N G S

All-America Executive Team “Most Honored” small-cap companies list; #1 
rankings in Best CEO, CFO, IR Team, and Financially Material ESG Disclosure: 
Hannon Armstrong 

Low Risk
Top 6th Percentile in Global Universe

Capital Finance International

Best ESG Sustainable Investment Strategy – USA: Hannon Armstrong

Financial Times

The Americas’ Fastest Growing Companies 2020

Real Leaders Top Impact Companies

#21 on the Real Leaders® Top 150 Impact Companies List

Environment + Energy Leader

Top Project of the Year Award: Ameresco and Hannon Armstrong

ESG CORPORATE RATING
A
Top 10th Percentile in Industry

Top 10th Percentile

Outperformer
Top 10th-30th Percentile

PA R T N E R S   I N   P U R P O S E 

 Global Frameworks
➜ UN Global Compact 
➜ UN Sustainable Development Goals 

Sustainability Reporting Standards
➜ Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures 
➜ The Partnership for Carbon Accounting Financials 
➜ Principles for Responsible Investment

Climate Action
➜ America is All In
➜ Business Ambition for 1.5°C: Our Only Future Campaign 
➜ Climate Action 100+

Diversity & Inclusion
➜ CEO Action For Diversity and Inclusion 
➜ The Hawthorn Club
➜ Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy

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B Top 10th percentile HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y 
R E P O R T  C A R D

The eighth annual edition of our Sustainability Report card discloses the CarbonCount® associated with each investment. 
CarbonCount® is an award-winning tool that evaluates the efficiency with which capital is employed to reduce greenhouse gases 
by estimating the carbon dioxide (“CO2”) emissions avoided annually per $1,000 of investment.

H A N N O N   A R M S T R O N G  I   S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y   R E P O R T   C A R D   2 0 2 0

MARKET

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 GC 

 BTM 

 GC 

 GC 

 GC 

 BTM 

 GC 

 GC 

 GC 

 BTM 

 GC 

 GC 

 GC 

 BTM 

 GC 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

REGION

 National 

 National 

 National 

 National 

 National 

 National 

 National 

 South 

 West 

 National 

 National 

 National 

 West 

 West 

 West 

 Midwest 

 West 

 West 

 West 

 Midwest 

 West 

 National 

 National 

 South 

 South 

 Midwest 

 South 

CARBONCOUNT®

MARKET

2.89

2.87

2.86

2.85

2.85

2.84

2.02

1.90

1.79

1.66

1.41

1.35

1.25

0.85

0.74

0.71

0.65

0.63

0.61

0.51

0.46

0.40

0.40

0.36

0.31

0.30

0.29

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 SI 

 BTM 

 SI 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 BTM 

 SI 

 BTM 

REGION

 Midwest 

 West 

 West 

 South 

 West 

 National 

 National 

 South 

 Northeast 

 South 

 Midwest 

 Midwest 

 South 

 South 

 National 

 West 

 West 

 West 

 Midwest 

 South 

 West 

 South 

 National 

 National 

 National 

 West 

 National 

CARBONCOUNT®

0.28

0.28

0.24

0.24

0.23

0.20

0.18

0.17

0.13

0.07

0.05

0.03

0.03

0.03

0.02

0.01

0.01

0.01

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.00

L
A
T
O
T

2.0m

Metric Tons of CO2 Avoided

1.03

CarbonCount®

576m

Gallons of Water Saved

BTM = Behind-the-Meter, which includes energy efficiency, distributed solar, and storage investments.

GC= Grid-Connected, which includes solar land and onshore wind investments

SI = Sustainable Infrastructure, which includes clean water, ecological restoration, and other resiliency investments. 

* Investments in seismic retrofits provide resiliency in the event of an earthquake. A secondary benefit of such retrofits includes the preservation of carbon embedded in the built environment.
CarbonCount® is a scoring tool that evaluates investments in U.S.-based, energy efficiency and renewable energy projects to determine estimated CO2 emissions avoided annually per $1,000 of investment.
Estimated carbon savings are calculated using the estimated kilowatt hours (“kWh”), gallons of fuel oil, million British thermal units (“MMBtus”) of natural gas and gallons of water saved as appropriate, 
for each project. The energy savings are converted into an estimate of metric tons of CO2 equivalent emissions based upon the project’s location and the corresponding emissions factor data from 
the U.S. Government and International Energy Administration. Portfolios of projects are represented on an aggregate basis. 

Estimated water savings are calculated as the sum of the direct annual estimated water savings from energy efficiency measures such as low flow water fixtures and the annual indirect water savings 
associated with the annual kWh generated and saved by our investments. The annual kWh of electricity generated and saved by our investments are multiplied by a the amount of water withdrawn 
and not returned to local water systems based upon the project’s location and the existing grid electricity generating units in that region. Indirect water savings is estimated using data prepared by 
the U.S. Government’s Energy Information Administration and the Union of a Scientists.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTB O A R D   O F 
D I R E C T O R S

JEFFREY W. ECKEL
Chairman

TERESA M. BRENNER
Lead Independent Director 
Chair, Nominating, Governance 
and Corporate Responsibility 
Committee

CLARENCE D. ARMBRISTER 

MICHAEL T. ECKHART

NANCY C. FLOYD

SIMONE F. LAGOMARSINO

CHARLES M. O’NEIL
Chair, Finance and Risk Committee

RICHARD J. OSBORNE
Chair, Compensation Committee

STEVEN G. OSGOOD
Chair, Audit Committee

L E A D E R S H I P 
T E A M

JEFFREY W. ECKEL 
Chairman and 
Chief Executive Officer

JEFFREY A. LIPSON
Chief Operating Officer 
and Chief Financial Officer

STEVEN L. CHUSLO
Executive Vice President 
and Chief Legal Officer

J. BRENDAN HERRON
Executive Vice President

KATHERINE McGREGOR DENT
Senior Vice President and 
Chief Human Resources Officer

DANIEL K. McMAHON, CFA
Executive Vice President, 
Portfolio Management

SUSAN D. NICKEY
Executive Vice President 
and Chief Client Officer

MARC T. PANGBURN
Executive Vice President 
and Co-Chief Investment Officer

NATHANIEL J. ROSE, CFA
Executive Vice President 
and Co-Chief Investment Officer

RICHARD R. SANTOROSKI
Executive Vice President 
and Chief Analytics Officer

ROBERT L. JOHNSON
Senior Vice President

JEFFREY Z. MARTIN
Senior Vice President 
and Chief Technology Officer

CHARLES W. MELKO, CPA 
Senior Vice President, Treasurer 
and Chief Accounting Officer

CONTACT

Corporate Headquarters
1906 Towne Centre Boulevard, 
Suite 370
Annapolis, MD 21401
info@hannonarmstrong.com
Phone: 410-571-9860

Investor Relations Contact
Chad Reed 
Investors@hannonarmstrong.com
Phone: 410-571-6189

Stock Listing
Hannon Armstrong 
Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.’s 
common stock is listed on the 
New York Stock Exchange 
under the symbol “HASI”.

Some of the information contained in this document are forward-looking statements and within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities 
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. When used in this document, words such as “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “continue,” “intend,” “should,” “may,” “target,” or similar 
expressions, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Investors are cautioned against placing undue 
reliance on such statements. Actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in 
the forward-looking statements include those discussed under the caption “Risk Factors" included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for our fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, which was filed 
with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as well as in other reports that we file with the SEC. Forward-looking statements are based on beliefs, assumptions and expectations as of 
December 31, 2020. We disclaim any obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements reflecting new estimates, events or circumstances after December 
31, 2020, except as may be required by law.

© 2021 Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 

Investing in Climate Solutions® and CarbonCount® are registered trademarks of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. in the U.S.

|  1 1

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT2020 
FORM 10-K

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
 ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020
OR

 TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from ______________ to ______________

Commission file number: 001-35877

HANNON ARMSTRONG SUSTAINABLE 
INFRASTRUCTURE CAPITAL, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

MARYLAND
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
Address
1906 Towne Centre Blvd 
Suite 370 
Annapolis MD 
(Address of principal executive offices)

46-1347456
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)
21401

(Zip Code)

(410) 571-9860
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class

Trading Symbol(s)

Name of each exchange on which registered

Common Stock, $0.01 par value per share

HASI

New York Stock Exchange

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
None

Indicate by check mark 

YES

NO

zz if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

zz if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act.

zz whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange 
Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such 
reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

zz whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to 
Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period 
that the registrant was required to submit such files).

zz whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth 
company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer”, “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in 
Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer 

Accelerated filer 

Non-accelerated filer 

Smaller reporting company 

Emerging growth company 

zz If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for 

complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.

zz whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal controls 
over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting 
firm that prepared or issued its audit report.

zz whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

As of June 30, 2020, the aggregate market value of the registrant’s common stock (includes unvested restricted stock) held by non-affiliates 
of the registrant was $2.0 billion based on the closing sales price of the registrant’s common stock on June 30, 2020  
as reported on the New York Stock Exchange.

On February 15, 2021, the registrant had a total of 78,153,506 shares of common stock, $0.01 par value, outstanding  
(which includes 416,908 shares of unvested restricted common stock).

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions of the registrant’s proxy statement for the 2021 annual meeting of stockholders are incorporated by reference into Part III  
of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

TA B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S

PART I 

ITEM 1. 

BUSINESS 

ITEM 1A.  RISK FACTORS 

ITEM 1B.  UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS 

ITEM 2. 

PROPERTIES 

ITEM 3. 

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS 

ITEM 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES 

PART II 

ITEM 5.  MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER 

MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES 

ITEM 6. 

SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA 

ITEM 7.  MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION 

AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS 

ITEM 7A.  QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK 

ITEM 8. 

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA 

ITEM 9.  CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS 
ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE 

ITEM 9A.  CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES 

ITEM 9B.  OTHER INFORMATION 

PART III 

ITEM 10.  DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE 

ITEM 11.  EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 

ITEM 12.  SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS 

AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS 

ITEM 13.  CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS 

AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE 

ITEM 14.  PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES 

PART IV 

ITEM 15.  EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES 

ITEM 16.  FORM 10-K SUMMARY 

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

We make forward-looking statements in this Annual Report on Form 
10-K (“Form 10-K”) within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities 
Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Section 21E of 
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange 
Act”) that are subject to risks and uncertainties. For these statements, we 
claim the protections of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements 
contained in such Sections. These forward-looking statements include 
information about possible or assumed future results of our business, 
financial condition, liquidity, results of operations, plans and objectives. 
When we use the words “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” 
“plan,” “continue,” “intend,” “should,” “may” or similar expressions, 
we intend to identify forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking  statements  are  subject  to  significant  risks  and 
uncertainties. Investors are cautioned against placing undue reliance 
on such statements. Actual results may differ materially from those set 
forth in the forward-looking statements. Other important factors that we 
think could cause our actual results to differ materially from expected 
results are summarized below, including the ongoing impact of the 
current outbreak of the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”), on the U.S., 
regional and global economies, the U.S. sustainable infrastructure 
market and the broader financial markets. The current outbreak of 
COVID-19 has also impacted, and is likely to continue to impact, 
directly or indirectly, many of the other important factors below and 
the risks described in this Form 10-K and in our subsequent filings 
under the Exchange Act. Other factors besides those listed could 
also adversely affect us. In addition, we cannot assess the impact 
of each factor on our business or the extent to which any factor, or 
combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially 
from those contained in any forward-looking statements. In particular, 
it is difficult to fully assess the impact of COVID-19 at this time due to, 
among other factors, uncertainty regarding the severity and duration of 
the outbreak domestically and internationally, uncertainty regarding the 
effectiveness of federal, state and local governments’ efforts to contain 
the spread of COVID-19 and respond to its direct and indirect impact 
on the U.S. economy and economic activity, including the timing of 
the successful distribution of an effective vaccine.

Statements regarding the following subjects, among others, may be 
forward-looking:

zz negative impacts from a continued spread of COVID-19, including 
on the U.S. or global economy or on our business, financial position, 
or results of operations;

zz our expected returns and performance of our investments;
zz the state of government legislation, regulation and policies that 
support or enhance the economic feasibility of projects that reduce 
carbon emissions or increase resilience to climate change, which 
we refer to as climate solutions, including energy efficiency and 
renewable energy projects and the general market demands for 
such projects;

zz market trends in our industry, energy markets, commodity prices, 
interest rates, the debt and lending markets or the general economy;

zz our business and investment strategy;
zz availability of opportunities to invest in climate solutions including 
energy efficiency and renewable energy projects and our ability to 
complete potential new opportunities in our pipeline;

zz our relationships with originators, investors, market intermediaries 

and professional advisers;

zz competition from other providers of capital;

zz our or any other company’s projected operating results;
zz actions and initiatives of the federal, state and local governments 
and changes to federal, state and local government  policies, 
regulations, tax laws and rates and the execution and impact of 
these actions, initiatives and policies;

zz the state of the U.S. economy generally or in specific geographic 

regions, states or municipalities and economic trends;

zz our  ability  to  obtain  and  maintain  financing  arrangements  on 

favorable terms, including securitizations;

zz general volatility of the securities markets in which we participate;
zz the credit quality of our assets;
zz changes in the value of our assets, our portfolio of assets and our 

investment and underwriting process;

zz the impact of weather conditions, natural disasters, accidents or 
equipment failures or other events that disrupt the operation of our 
investments or negatively impact the value of our assets;
zz rates of default or decreased recovery rates on our assets;
zz interest rate and maturity mismatches between our assets and any 

borrowings used to fund such assets;

zz changes in interest rates and the market value of our assets and 

target assets;

zz changes in commodity prices, including continued low natural gas 

prices;

zz effects of hedging instruments on our assets or liabilities;
zz the degree to which our hedging strategies may or may not protect 

us from risks, such as interest rate volatility;

zz impact of and changes in accounting guidance;
zz our ability to maintain our qualification as a real estate investment 

trust (“REIT”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes;

zz our ability to maintain our exemption from registration under the 
Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”);
zz availability of and our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel;
zz estimates relating to our ability to generate sufficient cash in the 
future to operate our business and to make distributions to our 
stockholders; and

zz our understanding of our competition.

Forward-looking statements are based on beliefs, assumptions and 
expectations as of the date of this Form 10-K. Any forward-looking 
statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made. New risks 
and uncertainties arise over time, and it is not possible for us to predict 
those events or how they may affect us. Except as required by law, 
we are not obligated to, and do not intend to, update or revise any 
forward-looking statements after the date of this Form 10-K, whether 
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The risks included here are not exhaustive. Other sections of this 
Form 10-K may include additional factors that could adversely affect 
our business and financial performance. Moreover, we operate in a 
very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risk factors 
emerge from time to time and it is not possible for management to 
predict all such risk factors, nor can it assess the impact of all such 
risk factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or 
combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially 
from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these 
risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on 
forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results.

|  3

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTRISK FACTOR SUMMARY

An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You 
should carefully consider the risks summarized in Item 1A, “Risk 
Factors” included in this report. These risks include, but are not limited 
to, the following:

Risks Related to Our Business and Our Industry
zz Our business depends in part on U.S. federal, state and local 
government policies and a decline in the level of government support 
could harm our business. 

zz A change in the fiscal health, level of appropriations or budgets of 
U.S. federal, state and local governments could reduce demand for 
the projects in which we invest and the capital we provide.

zz If the cost of energy generated by traditional sources of energy 
declines or continues to remain low, demand for the projects in 
which we invest may decline.

zz We operate in a competitive market and future competition may 

impact the terms of the investments we make.

Risks Related to Our Assets and Projects in Which We Invest
zz The lack of liquidity of our assets may adversely affect our business, 

including our ability to value and sell our assets.

zz Our investments are subject to delinquency, foreclosure and loss, 

any or all of which could result in losses to us.

zz Our mezzanine or subordinated loans are riskier, less protected 
against loss than, and generally less liquid than other forms of 
senior debt. 

zz Our equity investments, many of which are illiquid with no readily 

available market, involve a substantial degree of risk.

zz We generally do not control the projects in which we invest, which 
may result in the project owner making certain business decisions 
or taking risks with which we disagree. 

zz Portions of the electricity our assets generate is sold on the open 
market at spot-market prices. A prolonged environment of low prices 
for natural gas, or other conventional fuel sources such as we are 
experiencing may, and could continue to, have a material adverse 
effect on our long-term business prospects, financial condition and 
results of operations.

zz Some of the projects in which we invest  may require substantial 

operating or capital expenditures in the future.

zz We invest in projects which rely on third parties to manufacture 
quality products or provide reliable services in a timely manner and 
the failure of these third parties could cause project performance to 
be adversely affected.

zz Our insurance and contractual protections may not always cover 
lost revenue, increased expenses or liquidated damages payments.

zz Energy  efficiency,  renewable  energy  and  other  sustainable 
infrastructure projects are subject to performance risks, including 
risks due to extreme weather events, that could impact the repayment 
of and the return on our assets.

Risks Related to Our Company
zz We may change our operational policies (including our investment 
guidelines, strategies and policies) with the approval of our board 
of directors but without stockholder consent at any time, which may 
adversely affect the market value of our common stock and our 
ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

zz An increase in our borrowing costs relative to the interest we receive 
on our leveraged assets may adversely affect our profitability and our 
cash available for distribution to our stockholders. Our borrowings 
may have a shorter duration than our assets.

zz We do not have a formal policy limiting the amount of debt we may 
incur. Our board of directors may change our financial leverage 
guidelines without stockholder consent.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock
zz We cannot assure you of our ability to make distributions in the 
future. Although we currently do not intend to do so, if our portfolio of 
assets does not generate sufficient income and cash flow, we could 
be required to sell assets, borrow funds or make a portion of our 
distributions in the form of a taxable stock distribution or distribution 
of debt securities in order to maintain our qualification as a REIT.

Risks Related to Our Organization and Structure
zz Our qualification as a REIT depends on interpretations of highly 
technical and complex legal provisions, and our failure to qualify 
or remain qualified as a REIT would subject us to taxes that would 
negatively impact the results of our operations and reduce the 
amount of cash available for distribution to our stockholders.

Risks Related to Our Taxation as a REIT
zz Complying with REIT requirements may force us to liquidate assets 

or forego otherwise attractive investments.

Risks Related to COVID-19
zz The current outbreak and spread of the COVID-19 outbreak has 
disrupted, and is likely to further cause severe disruptions in, the U.S. 
and global economies and financial markets and create widespread 
business continuity and viability issues.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

PART I

In this Form 10-K, unless specifically stated otherwise or the context 
otherwise indicates, references to “we,” “our,” “us,” “HASI,” and 
“our company” refer to Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure 
Capital, Inc., a Maryland corporation, Hannon Armstrong Sustainable 
Infrastructure, L.P. and any of our other subsidiaries. Hannon Armstrong 
Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P. is a Delaware limited partnership of 

which we are the sole general partner and to which we refer in this 
Form 10-K as our “Operating Partnership.” Our business is focused on 
reducing the impact of greenhouse gases that have been scientifically 
linked to climate change. We refer to these gases, which are often 
for consistency expressed as carbon dioxide equivalents, as carbon 
emissions.

ITEM 1.  BUSINESS

General
We invest in climate solutions developed by the leading companies 
in the energy efficiency, renewable energy and other sustainable 
infrastructure markets. We believe that we are one of the first U.S. 
public companies solely dedicated to climate solution investments. 
Our goal is to generate attractive returns from a diversified portfolio 
of  projects  with  long-term,  predictable  cash  flows  from  proven 
technologies that reduce carbon emissions or increase resilience to 
climate change. 

We are internally managed, and our management team has extensive 
relevant industry knowledge and experience. We have long-standing 
relationships with the leading energy service companies (“ESCOs”), 
manufacturers, project developers, utilities, owners and operators. 
Our origination strategy is to use these relationships to generate 
recurring, programmatic investment and fee-generating opportunities. 
Additionally, we have relationships with leading commercial and 
investment banks and institutional investors from which we are referred 
additional investment and fee-generating opportunities.

We completed approximately $1.9 billion of transactions during 
2020, compared to approximately $1.3 billion during 2019. As 
of December 31, 2020, we held approximately $2.9 billion of 
transactions on our balance sheet, which we refer to as our “Portfolio.” 
For those transactions that we choose not to hold on our balance sheet, 
we transfer all or a portion of the economics of the transaction, typically 
using securitization trusts, to institutional investors in exchange for cash 
and, in certain cases, residual interests in the trusts and ongoing fees. 
As of December 31, 2020, we managed approximately $4.3 billion 
in these trusts or vehicles that are not consolidated on our balance 
sheet. When combined with our Portfolio, as of December 31, 2020, 
we manage approximately $7.2 billion of assets, which we refer to 
as our “Managed Assets.” 

Our investments take many forms, including equity, joint ventures, land 
ownership, loans, and other financing transactions. We also generate 
ongoing fees via off-balance sheet securitization transactions, services, 
and asset management. We use borrowings as part of our strategy 
to increase potential returns to our stockholders and have available a 
broad range of financing sources including non-recourse or recourse 
debt, equity, and off-balance sheet securitization structures. A further 
description of our financing activities can be found herein.

We have a large and active pipeline of potential new opportunities that 
are in various stages of our underwriting process. We refer to potential 

opportunities as being part of our pipeline if we have determined 
that the project fits within our investment strategy and exhibits the 
appropriate risk and reward characteristics through an initial credit 
analysis, including a quantitative and qualitative assessment of the 
opportunity, as well as research on the relevant market and sponsor. 
Our pipeline of transactions that could potentially close in the next 
12 months consists of opportunities in which we will be the lead 
originator as well as opportunities in which we may participate with 
other institutional investors. As of December 31, 2020, our pipeline 
consisted of more than $3.0 billion in new equity, debt and real estate 
opportunities. However, there can be no assurance with regard to any 
specific terms of such pipeline transactions or that any or all of the 
transactions in our pipeline will be completed. 

We  are  committed  to  leadership  in  transparent  disclosure  on 
environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) matters. Beginning 
in 2013, we became one of the first capital providers to evaluate 
the  carbon  efficiency  of  our  investment  portfolio  by  utilizing 
CarbonCount©, a proprietary tool which measures the efficiency 
with which our investments reduce carbon emissions. In 2017, we 
believe we were the first U.S-based public company to commit to the 
Climate Disclosure Standards Board led initiative on implementing 
the recommendations of the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force 
for Climate-related Financial Disclosures (“TCFD”) and have since 
endeavored to provide the recommended disclosures in our Form 
10-K. In 2020, we joined the Partnership for Carbon Accounting 
Financials (“PCAF”), a global financial industry-led partnership to 
implement a consistent and transparent disclosure framework to report 
carbon emissions resulting from financed assets. We anticipate that 
our reporting in accordance with PCAF will be implemented by 2023. 
For further information on our ESG disclosures, see the discussion in 
the sections titled “Investment Strategy” and “Environmental and Social 
Responsibility and Corporate Governance” herein. In addition, we are 
committed to providing transparent disclosures on our human capital 
management and have enhanced the discussion herein in the section 
titled “Human Capital and Social Strategy.”

We  elected  to  be  taxed  as  a  REIT  for  U.S.  federal  income  tax 
purposes, commencing with our taxable year ended December 31, 
2013 and operate our business in a manner that permits us to maintain 
our exemption from registration as an investment company under the 
1940 Act.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1. Business

Investment strategy
With scientific consensus that global-warming trends are linked to 
human activities and resulting in various extreme weather events, 
we believe our firm is well-positioned to generate attractive risk-
adjusted returns by investing in, and managing a portfolio of, assets 
that address climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions. Further, 
with increasing weather-related events, we see similar investment 
opportunities in infrastructure assets that mitigate the impact of, and 
increase the resiliency to, these weather events and other adverse 
impacts of climate change.

Our vision is that every investment improves our climate future and 
thus the carbon impact of an investment is at the core of our business 
model. We believe that climate positive investments will produce 
attractive risk adjusted returns and require investments to be neutral to 
negative on incremental carbon emissions or have some other tangible 
environmental benefit such as reducing water consumption.

Our  climate-positive  investment  thesis  is  based  on  the  following 
theories:

Of our pipeline, 58% is related to BTM assets and 33% is related to 
GC assets, with the remainder related to other sustainable infrastructure. 
We prefer investments in which the assets have a long-term, investment-
grade rated off-taker or counterparties. For BTM assets, the off-taker 
or counterparty may be the building owner or occupant, and we 
may be secured by the installed improvements or other real estate 
rights. For GC assets, the off-taker or counterparty may be a utility or 
electric user who has entered into a contractual commitment, such as 
a power purchase agreement (“PPA”), to purchase power produced 
by a renewable energy project at a minimum price with potential price 
escalators for a portion of the project’s estimated life. 

We make our investments utilizing a variety of structures, including:

zz Equity  investments  in  either  preferred  or  common  structures  in 

unconsolidated entities;

zz Government and commercial receivables or securities, such as loans 

for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects; and

zz Real estate, such as land or other assets leased for use by GC 

zz More efficient technologies are more productive and thus should 

projects typically under long term leases.

lead to higher economic returns;

zz Lower portfolio risk is inherent in a portfolio of smaller investments, 
generated by trends of increasing decentralization and digitalization 
of  energy  assets,  compared  to  larger,  centralized  utility-scale 
investments; 

zz Investing in assets aligned with scientific consensus and broadly 
held societal values will reduce potential regulatory and social costs 
through better internalization of externalities; and

zz Assets that reduce carbon emissions may represent an embedded 
option that may increase in value if regulatory authorities were to 
set a price on carbon emissions.

We believe combining this investment thesis with our multi-decade 
experience in investing in our markets through multiple interest rate and 
business cycles, intermittent governmental support for reducing carbon 
emissions and several cycles of business expansions in renewable and 
other sustainable infrastructure markets, allows us to earn attractive risk-
adjusted returns on the assets in which we invest. We also believe there 
is a very large potential market opportunity as the legacy technologies 
for generating and using energy and the systems that produce carbon 
emissions are converted to low-to-no carbon emission systems while 
mitigation and resiliency investments continue to grow to address 
severe weather events and other climate change impacts.

Our investments are focused on three areas:

zz Behind-the-Meter (“BTM”): distributed building or facility projects, 
which  reduce  energy  usage  or  cost  through  the  use  of  solar 
generation and energy storage or energy efficiency improvements 
including heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (“HVAC”), 
lighting, energy controls, roofs, windows, building shells, and/or 
combined heat and power systems;

zz Grid-Connected  (“GC”):  projects  that  deploy  cleaner  energy 
sources, such as solar and wind to generate power where the 
off-taker or counterparty is part of the wholesale electric power 
grid; and

zz Sustainable Infrastructure: upgraded transmission and distribution 
systems, water and storm water infrastructure, and other projects that 
improve water or energy efficiency, increase resiliency, positively 
impact the environment or more efficiently use natural resources.

Our equity investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency 
projects are operated by various renewable energy companies or 
by joint ventures in which we participate. These transactions allow 
us to participate in the cash flows associated with these projects, 
typically on a priority basis. Our energy efficiency debt investments 
are usually assigned the payment stream from the project savings 
and  other  contractual  rights,  often  using  our  pre-existing  master 
purchase  agreements  with  the  ESCOs.  Our  debt  investments  in 
various renewable energy or other sustainable infrastructure projects 
or  portfolios  of  projects  are  generally  secured  by  the  installed 
improvements or other real estate rights. We also own, directly or 
through equity investments, or manage over 39,000 acres of land 
that are leased under long-term agreements to over 60 renewable 
energy projects, where our investment returns are typically senior to 
most project costs, debt, and equity. 

We focus on projects that use proven technology and that often have 
contractually committed agreements with an investment grade rated 
off-taker or counterparties. We often make investments where we 
hold preferred or mezzanine position in a project where we are 
subordinated to project debt and/or preferred forms of equity. Investing 
greater than 15% of our assets in any individual project requires the 
approval of a majority of our independent directors. We may adjust 
the mix and duration of our assets over time in order to allow us 
to manage various aspects of our portfolio, including expected risk-
adjusted returns, macroeconomic conditions, liquidity, availability of 
adequate financing for our assets, and the maintenance of our REIT 
qualification and our exemption from registration as an investment 
company under the 1940 Act.

As of December 31, 2020, our Portfolio consisted of over 230 
investments and we seek to manage the diversity of our Portfolio 
by,  among  other  factors,  project  type,  project  operator,  type  of 
investment, type of technology, transaction size, geography, obligor 
and maturity. The mix of our Portfolio is expected to vary over time 
and approximately 48% of our Portfolio was invested in BTM assets 
and approximately 52% was invested in GC assets, which includes 
our land holdings.

As part of our investment process, we calculate the ratio of the estimated 
first year of metric tons of carbon emissions avoided by our investments 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1. Business

divided by the capital invested to quantify the carbon impact of our 
investments. In this calculation, which we refer to as CarbonCount®, 
we use emissions factor data, expressed on a CO2 equivalent basis, 
from the U.S. Government or the International Energy Administration 
to an estimate of a project’s energy production or savings to compute 
an estimate of metric tons of carbon emissions avoided. We estimate 
that our investments originated in 2020 will reduce annual carbon 
emissions by approximately 2.0 million metric tons, equating to a 
CarbonCount® of 1.03. In addition to carbon, we also consider 
other environmental attributes, such as water use reduction, stormwater 
remediation benefits and stream restoration benefits.

Financing strategy
We believe we have available a broad range of financing sources 
as part of our strategy that are designed to increase potential returns 
to our stockholders. We may finance our investments through the 
use of non-recourse debt, recourse debt, or equity and may also 
decide to finance such transactions through the use of off-balance 
sheet securitization structures. We often provide, and our sources of 
financing are increasingly interested in, the estimated carbon emission 
savings or environmental ratings associated with our financings. We 
believe that certain debt that we have issued meets the environmental 
eligibility criteria for green bonds as defined by the International 
Capital Markets Association’s Green Bond Principles, which we 
believe makes our debt more attractive for many investors compared 
to such offerings which do not qualify under these principles.

We plan to raise additional equity capital and continue to use other 
fixed and floating rate borrowings which may be in the form of 
additional bank credit facilities, including term loans and revolving 
facilities, warehouse facilities, repurchase agreements and public and 
private equity and debt issuances. We may also consider the use of 
separately financed special purpose entities or funds to allow us to 
expand our investments or manage Portfolio diversity.

The decision on how we finance specific assets or groups of assets 
is largely driven by risk and portfolio management considerations, as 
well as the overall interest rate environment, prevailing credit spreads 
and the terms of available financing and market conditions. Over time, 
as market conditions change, we may use other forms of leverage 
in addition to these financing arrangements. Although we are not 
restricted by any regulatory requirements as to the type or amount 
of financial leverage we may utilize, we do seek to, but are not 
required to, operate within certain metrics, including maintaining a 

Human capital and social strategy
Our  culture  is  focused  on  hiring  and  retaining  highly  talented 
employees with diverse backgrounds and empowering them to create 
value for our stockholders, and our success is dependent on employee 
understanding of and investment in their role in that value creation. Our 
chief executive officer periodically leads employee meetings intended 
to reinforce the importance of sustainability and regularly meets with 
small groups of employees to receive their feedback on our business. 
Our employees are responsible for upholding our purpose, values, 
strategy, and talent leadership expectations. 

It is important to us that our employees are engaged in our mission 
of sustainability. We also want them to be engaged to drive our 
business forward, to recruit from their networks, and envision a long 
tenure with us. We meet no less than quarterly as a Company to 

We believe that our long history of sustainable infrastructure investing, 
the experience, expertise and relationships of our management team, 
the anticipated credit strength of the obligors or investees involved 
in our investments and the size and growth potential of our market, 
position us well to capitalize on our strategy.

Refer to Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial 
Condition and Results of Operations—Results of Operations, for 
additional discussion on the performance of our investment portfolio.

financial leverage ratio, defined as the ratio of debt to equity, at or 
below 2.5 to 1. In addition, our board of directors has established 
a current target range for our percentage of fixed rate debt to total 
debt of between 75% and 100%. See additional discussion in Item 7. 
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and 
Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources regarding our 
ongoing evaluation of our leverage limits and fixed-rate debt targets.

For those transactions that we choose not to hold on our balance 
sheet, we transfer all or a portion of the economics of the transaction, 
typically using securitization trusts, to institutional investors in exchange 
for cash and in certain cases, residual assets and ongoing fees. 
The market for the assets we finance has remained active throughout 
various market cycles due to investor demand for high credit quality, 
long-term investments. We may arrange such securitizations of loans 
or other assets prior to originating the transaction and thus avoid 
exposure to credit spread, interest rate and funding risks. We also 
typically manage and service these assets in exchange for fees. We 
may also use other funds or structures where institutional investors 
purchase all or a portion of the economics of the transaction and 
where we may receive upfront or ongoing fees for managing the 
assets. We periodically provide other services, including arranging 
financings that are held on the balance sheet of other investors and 
advising various companies with respect to structuring investments. 

Refer to Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial 
Conditions and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources, 
for additional discussion on our financings and our ratios and Item 8. 
Financial Statements and Supplementary Data, Notes 5, 7 and 8 to 
our financial statements for further information on the types and amounts 
of our financing activities.

provide information to employees on our mission, strategic planning 
and financial results. We continuously evaluate our employees’ level 
of engagement by walking the floors (or, when the team is working 
remotely, scheduling one-on-one check-in calls) and asking open-
ended questions. We also evaluate our employees’ engagement via 
formal surveys or similar tools on a periodic basis. We care about 
our employees’ employment experience and care about them as 
individuals who are motivated in different ways. 

We adhere to a blended learning approach with the understanding 
that our people learn from experiences (on the job and in life), from 
other people (mentors or supportive managers), and formal learning 
and training programs. We acknowledge that learning is highly 
individualized and needs to be offered in a way that is most conducive 

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Item 1. Business

to a specific learner’s needs. We run a periodic education series which 
includes internal and external speakers presenting topics of interest that 
are relevant to our employees. We provide multiple learning solutions 
which cover a wide range of areas such as diversity and inclusion 
training, leadership skills, financial knowledge, technology training, 
and presentation skills. We also support the pursuit of advanced 
certifications and degrees in areas including business, science and 
engineering, and liberal and fine arts and employ formal and informal 
coaching arrangements. 

Managers hold performance conversations with their employees on 
a periodic basis (targeting a minimum of twice a year) to ensure 
they receive the performance feedback they deserve, and to allow 
managers to obtain insight into how to support the development of 
their staff, and to ensure that performance expectations are clear and 
aligned with the overarching objectives of the Company. We also 
provide continuous dialogue in between these formal touchpoints. 

We provide attractive benefits that promote the health of our employees 
and their families and design compelling job opportunities, aligned 
with  our  mission,  in  an  energizing  work  environment.  We  also 
encourage our employees to continue to develop in their careers, 
including by obtaining advanced degrees or professional certifications. 
We compensate our employees according to our fair remuneration 
policies and believe in paying for performance. Therefore, employees 
generally receive a portion of their compensation in the form of equity 
grants tied to performance. We encourage our employees to contribute 
their time to support various community and charitable activities and 
sponsor several local community organizations with a primary focus 
on environmental organizations. In addition to competitive base 
salaries, cash bonuses, and equity participation for the majority of 
employees, we are committed to continuously evaluating and ensuring 
the competitiveness of our benefits offerings so that we meet the various 
needs of our employees and their families. Despite a healthcare 
environment that is facing rising costs, we continue to pay the vast 
majority of the cost of our employees’ healthcare insurance.

Our total rewards include:

zz Medical/Prescription Drug

zz Dental

zz Vision

zz Group Life/AD&D Insurance

zz Long-Term Disability (LTD)

zz 401k Retirement Plan with match and immediate vesting of one’s 

own contributions 

zz Vacation 

zz Tuition reimbursement

zz Reimbursement for gym memberships and equipment

zz Employee assistance program – encompasses wellness, legal, and 

financial tools and resources

zz Flu shot clinics on-site

zz Leave policies include 11 paid holidays, maternity and paternity 

plans, and paid time off including sick leave. 

At Hannon Armstrong, we take a values-driven, broad view of diversity 
and inclusion. We believe that fostering an internal climate that is 
supportive and allows people of all backgrounds to flourish lends 
itself to the highest levels of company performance and facilitates 
the attraction and retention of best-in-class talent. We also believe 
it is inherently the right way to conduct business. We support an 
innovative, creative culture where people can bring their best and 
most authentic selves to work. Employees who hold divergent opinions 
are encouraged to voice their views. We track and report internally 
on key talent metrics including workforce demographics, critical role 
pipeline data, diversity data, and engagement and inclusion indices.

Decisions regarding staffing, selection, and promotions are made 
on the basis of individual qualifications related to the requirements 
of the position. We are committed to identifying and developing 
the talents of our next generation of leaders. We endeavor to select 
qualified individuals from a diverse pool of candidates derived from 
broad outreach efforts when we are recruiting. We are committed to 
the sourcing and/or promotion of highly-qualified women, people of 
color and other under-represented groups for management and Board 
positions. We are also challenging ourselves to better support our 
female and underrepresented employees in their onboarding, training, 
development and progression within the Company.

Our policy is “equal pay for equal work” in compliance with applicable 
state law. Compensation for our employees is based upon experience, 
seniority, educational-attainment, and individual contribution and 
company performance against goals. 

Refer to Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial 
Condition and Results of Operations - Results of Operations – Human 
Capital Metrics for discussion of metrics related to our Human Capital 
and Social strategy.

Environmental and social responsibility and corporate governance
We own and invest in a diversified portfolio of sustainable infrastructure 
projects focused on reducing or mitigating the impacts of climate change 
through the allocation of our capital across the energy efficiency, 
renewable energy and other sustainable infrastructure markets. Under 
the direction of our chief executive officer and the board of directors, 
we are focused on achieving a high level of environmental and social 
responsibility and strong corporate governance. The Nominating, 
Governance and Corporate Responsibility Committee of our board 
of directors is responsible for our ESG oversight, including related 
policies and communications. Additionally, we have a committee 
comprised of employees from across our organization that is focused 
on implementing ESG strategies and policies and reports directly  
to  our  chief  executive  officer.  Annually  we  publish  a  report  that 
illustrates our progress on these matters. 

Our business and business strategy are focused on addressing climate 
change, in part through the reduction of carbon emissions that have 
been scientifically linked to climate change. As described in the 
previous Investment Strategy section , we quantify the carbon impact 
of each of our investments. In addition, we operate our business in a 
manner intended to reduce our own environmental impact, including 
by purchasing carbon credits for 100% of the electricity used by our 
office, encouraging recycling and composting, and offering clean 
transportation employee incentives for electric and hybrid vehicles. We 
have also adopted policies focused on minimizing the environmental 
impact of our operations.

We are a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact, an 
initiative focused on responsible business practices related to human 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1. Business

rights, labor, the environment and anti-corruption. We participate in 
a number of initiatives and coalitions that share our commitment to 
climate action, corporate sustainability, climate-risk disclosure and 
reporting, and the expansion of clean energy including the United 
Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment, the United 
Nations Global Compact campaign entitled Business Ambition for 
1.5°- Only Our Future, Climate Action 100+, and the reporting 
framework established by an international consortium of business and 
environmental NGOs referred to as the Climate Disclosure Standards 
Board. 

Our corporate governance philosophy is based on maintaining a 
close alignment of our interests with those of our stakeholders. Notable 
features of our corporate governance structure include the following:

zz our board of directors is not staggered, with each of our directors 

subject to re-election annually;

zz six of our seven directors have been determined to be independent 
for purposes of the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) corporate 
governance listing standards and Rule 10A-3 under the Exchange 
Act;

zz the lead independent director of the board of directors convenes 
and chairs executive sessions of the independent directors to discuss 
certain matters without management present;

zz three of our directors qualify as an “audit committee financial expert” 
as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”);

zz two of our directors (including our lead independent director are 
women) constituting 29% of the board in furtherance of our board 
diversity policy;

zz our directors provide input on the agenda of which topics are 

discussed during board meetings; 

zz our Corporate Governance Guidelines provide for a majority vote 
policy for the election of directors pursuant to which any nominee 
who receives a greater number of votes “withheld” from his or her 
election than votes “for” such election shall promptly tender his or 
her resignation to our board of directors for their consideration to 
accept or reject such resignation;

zz a target retirement age of 75 has been established for our directors;

zz we  have  an  active  stockholder  outreach  program,  including 
providing stockholders the right to vote on an advisory basis on the 
fairness of the remuneration of executives;

zz our board members and named executive offers are required to 
maintain certain levels of stock ownership in our company ranging 
between three and six times their base salary or retainer, depending 
on position; 

zz our Statement of Corporate Policy Regarding Equity Transaction 
prohibits  our  directors  and  officers  from  hedging  our  equity 
securities, holding such securities in a margin account or pledging 
such securities as collateral for a loan;

Our focus on transparent ESG reporting
We believe in transparent reporting relating to ESG matters because 
we believe such reporting improves the understanding of our financial 
results. An emphasis on a durable social fabric, including diverse, 
engaged, and fairly compensated staff, is a material factor in our 
financial  success.  Similarly,  our  focus  on  achieving  best-in-class 
corporate governance practices helps to ensure that our team will 
operate in a manner consistent with our organizational mission and 

zz a Clawback Policy was adopted whereby it is possible to recoup 
performance or incentive-based compensation in the event of an 
accounting restatement due to material noncompliance with any 
financial reporting requirements under the securities laws (other 
than due to a change in applicable accounting methods, rules or 
interpretations);

zz we have opted out of the control share acquisition statute in the 
Maryland General Corporations Law (the “MGCL”) and have 
exempted, from the business combinations statute in the MGCL, 
transactions that are approved by our board of directors;

zz we do not have a stockholder rights plan; and

zz our  Nominating,  Governance  and  Corporate  Responsibility 
Committee oversees and directs our ESG strategies, activities, 
policies and communications.

In order to foster the highest standards of ethics and conduct in all 
business relationships, we have adopted a Code of Business Conduct 
and Ethics policy (the “Code of Conduct”). This policy covers a wide 
range of business practices and procedures and applies to our officers, 
directors, employees, agents, representatives, and consultants. In 
addition, we have implemented whistleblowing procedures designed 
to facilitate the report of accounting and auditing matters as well 
as Code of Conduct matters (the “Whistleblower Policy”) that sets 
forth procedures by which any Covered Persons (as defined in the 
Whistleblower Policy) may report, on a confidential basis, concerns 
regarding,  among  other  things,  any  questionable  or  unethical 
accounting, internal accounting controls or auditing matters with 
our Audit Committee as well as any potential Code of Conduct or 
ethics violations with our Nominating, Governance and Corporate 
Responsibility Committee or our General Counsel.

We have adopted a Statement of Corporate Policy Regarding Equity 
Transactions that governs the process to be followed in the purchase 
or sale of our securities by any of our directors, officers, employees 
and consultants and prohibits any such persons from buying or selling 
our securities on the basis of material nonpublic information, and also 
prohibits our directors and officers from hedging equity securities of 
the Company, holding such securities in a margin account or pledging 
such securities as collateral for a loan. We review all of these policies 
on a periodic basis with our employees.

Our business is managed by our senior management team, subject to 
the supervision and oversight of our board of directors. Our directors 
stay informed about our business by attending meetings of our board 
of directors and its committees and through supplemental reports and 
communications. 

deliver superior risk-adjusted investment returns. As discussed in the 
“Investment Strategy” section above, we quantify the environmental 
impact of every transaction we execute through the application of 
CarbonCount®. Our 2020 CarbonCount® and avoided emissions for 
investments originated in 2020 can be found in Item 7. Management’s 
Discussion  and  Analysis  of  Financial  Condition  and  Results  of 
Operations - Results of Operations - Environmental Metrics.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1. Business

We continue to implement the recommendations of the TCFD and are 
located in this filing as follows: 

zz Governance - Included in this section “Environmental and Social 

Responsibility and Corporate Governance”; 

zz Strategy - Item 1. Business - Investment Strategy; 

zz Risk  Management  -  Item  7.  Management’s  Discussion  and 
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Factors 
Impacting our Operating Results - Impact of climate of climate 
change on our future operations (Scenario Analysis). Also Item 7A. 
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk - Risk 
Management; and

zz Metrics  and  Targets  -  Item  7.  Management’s  Discussion  and 
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Results 
of Operations - Environmental Metrics.

In  addition  to  the  above  environmental  reporting  initiatives,  in 
2020, we joined PCAF, a global financial industry-led partnership 
to implement a consistent and transparent disclosure framework to 
report carbon emissions resulting from financed assets. We expect 
to implement our reporting in accordance with PCAF by 2023. We 
have also begun to disclose metrics related to our Human Capital 
and Social strategy. Refer to Item 7. Management’s Discussion and 
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Results of 
Operations – Human Capital Metrics. 

Competition
We compete against a number of parties, including banks, private 
equity, hedge or infrastructure investment funds, insurance companies, 
mutual funds, institutional investors, investment banking firms, financial 
institutions, specialty finance companies, utilities, independent power 
producers, project developers, pension funds, governmental bodies, 
public entities established to own infrastructure assets and other entities.

We compete primarily on the basis of service, price, structure and 
flexibility as well as the breadth and depth of our expertise. We may at 
times compete and at other times partner or work as a participant with 
alternative financing sources. The continued low yields in alternative 
investment opportunities and increasing investor acceptance of the 
climate solutions market has increased the level of competition we 
experience.  The  increase  in  the  number  and/or  the  size  of  our 
competitors in this market has resulted and could continue to result in 
less attractive terms on our investments or the need to accept a higher 
level of risks associated with our investments.

We also encounter competition in the form of potential customers 
or our origination partners electing to use their own capital rather 

than engaging us as an outside capital provider. In addition, we 
may also face competition based on technological developments 
that reduce demand for electricity, increase power supplies through 
existing infrastructure or that otherwise compete with our sustainable 
infrastructure projects.

We believe that a significant part of our competitive advantage is our 
management team’s experience and industry expertise. However, we 
may not be able to achieve our business goals or expectations due 
to the competitive risks that we face, including increasing competition 
as a result of the increasing interest by various investors in our assets 
classes, including renewable energy, to enhance their investment 
returns. This, or other increases, in competition among competing 
providers of capital could adversely affect the returns we generate on 
our investments, and thereby adversely affect the market price of our 
common stock. For additional information concerning these competitive 
risks, see Item 1A. Risk Factors—We operate in a competitive market 
and future competition may impact the terms of our investments.

Employees; staffing
As of December 31, 2020, we employed 73 people. We intend to hire additional business professionals as needed to assist in the implementation 
of our business strategy. See above for discussion of our Human Capital and Social Strategy. 

Information about our executive officers and other leadership team personnel
Our executive officers and other leadership team personnel and their biographies are as follows:

Jeffrey W. Eckel, 62, has served as our president, chief executive 
officer, and chairman of our board of directors since 2013 and was 
with the predecessor of our company as president and chief executive 
officer since 2000 and prior to that from 1985 to 1989 as a senior 
vice president. Mr. Eckel is a member of the board of directors of the 
Alliance To Save Energy and on the Board of Trustees of The Nature 
Conservancy of Maryland and DC. Mr. Eckel was appointed by the 
governor of Maryland to the board of the Maryland Clean Energy 
Center in 2011 where Mr. Eckel served until 2016 while also serving 
as its chairman from 2012 to 2014. Mr. Eckel has over 35 years 
of experience in financing, owning and operating infrastructure and 
energy assets. Mr. Eckel received a Bachelor of Arts degree from 
Miami University in 1980 and a Master of Public Administration degree 
from Syracuse University, Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public 
Affairs, in 1981. He holds Series 24, 63 and 79 securities licenses. 

Jeffrey A. Lipson, 53, has served as an executive vice president and 
our chief operating officer since 2021 and as our chief financial 
officer since 2019. Previously, Mr. Lipson was president and chief 
executive officer and director of Congressional Bancshares and its 
subsidiary Congressional Bank from 2013 to 2018. Mr. Lipson 
continues to serve on the board of directors of Congressional Bank. 
Mr. Lipson has also been a senior vice president and the treasurer 
of CapitalSource Inc. and its subsidiary CapitalSource Bank and a 
senior vice president, Corporate Treasury, at Bank of America and 
its predecessor FleetBoston Financial. Mr. Lipson received a Bachelor 
of Science degree in Economics from Pennsylvania State University 
in 1989 and a Masters in Business Administration in Finance from 
New York University’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business in 1993.  
Mr. Lipson serves on the Board of Directors of the Jewish Council for 
the Aging of Greater Washington.

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Item 1. Business

Susan D. Nickey, 60, has served as an executive vice president 
and our chief client officer since January 2021 and is responsible 
for leading business development and managing client relationships. 
Ms. Nickey previously served as a managing director from 2014 to 
2021. Ms. Nickey currently serves as interim treasurer on the board of 
directors of the American Clean Power Association and also serves on 
the board of directors of the American Council of Renewable Energy. 
Additionally, Ms. Nickey is a member of the President’s Council at 
Ceres, a non-profit sustainability advocacy organization. Previously, 
she founded and served as CEO of Threshold Power. Ms. Nickey 
received a Bachelor in Business Administration from the University of 
Notre Dame in 1983 and a Master’s of Science in Foreign Service 
from Georgetown University in 1986.

Steven L. Chuslo, 63, has served as an executive vice president 
and our general counsel and secretary since 2013 and the chief 
legal officer since January 2021. Previously, Mr. Chuslo has served 
with  the  predecessor  of  our  company  as  general  counsel  and 
secretary since 2008. Mr. Chuslo is responsible for governance 
support to the board of directors and management and oversees 
the  company’s  legal  resources  in  the  investment  and  portfolio 
management  activities.  Mr.  Chuslo  has  more  than  30  years  of 
experience in the fields of securities, commercial and project finance, 
energy project development, and U.S. federal regulation. Mr. Chuslo 
received a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of 
Massachusetts/Amherst and a Juris Doctorate from the Georgetown 
University Law Center.

Nathaniel J. Rose, CFA, 43, has served as executive vice president 
since 2015 and a co-chief investment officer beginning in 2021. 
Previously, Mr. Rose served as our chief operating officer from 2015 
to 2017, our chief investment officer from 2013 to 2015 and 2017 
to  2020  and  has  been  with  the  Company  and  its  predecessor 
since 2000. Mr. Rose has been involved with a vast majority of our 
transactions since 2000. Mr. Rose earned a joint Bachelor of Science 
and Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Richmond in 2000, 
a Master of Business Administration degree from the Darden School 
of Business Administration at the University of Virginia in 2009, is a 
CFA charter holder and has passed the CPA examination. He holds 
a Series 63 and 79 securities licenses.

Daniel K. McMahon, CFA, 49, has served us as an executive vice 
president since 2015 and is the head of our portfolio management 
group. He has been with the Company and its predecessor since 
2000 in a variety of roles, including as a senior vice president from 
2007 to 2015. He has played a role in analyzing, negotiating, 
structuring, and managing several billion dollars of transactions. 
Mr. McMahon received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University 
of California, San Diego in 1993, and is a CFA charter holder. He 
holds Series 24, 63 and 79 securities licenses.

Marc T. Pangburn, CFA, 35, has served as an executive vice president 
and a co-chief investment officer since January 2021. Mr. Pangburn 
joined the Company in 2013 and previously served as a managing 
director until 2021, and is jointly responsible for the Company’s 
investing activities. Previously, Mr. Pangburn worked at MP2 Capital, a 
solar development and financing company, where he was responsible 
for structuring the firm’s transactions, and worked in the private capital 
group at New York Life Investments, focusing on utilities, energy and 
infrastructure debt and equity investments. Mr. Pangburn received his 
Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Drew University and is a 
CFA charter holder. 

J. Brendan Herron, 60, has served as an executive vice president 
since 2013 and served in a variety of roles at the predecessor of our 
company and its affiliates from 1994 to 2005, and from 2011 to 
2013. Mr. Herron served as our chief financial officer from 2013 
to 2019. Mr. Herron will transition to an advisory consultant role in 
April 2021. Mr. Herron has over 25 years of experience in structuring, 
executing and operating infrastructure and technology investments. He 
formerly served on the U.S. Commerce Secretary’s Renewable Energy 
and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee and is presently a member 
of the Board of Trustees of Calvert Hall College High School (Baltimore, 
MD). Mr. Herron received a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting 
and computer science from Loyola University Maryland in 1982 and 
a Master of Business Administration degree from Loyola University 
Maryland in 1987 and has passed the CPA and CMA examinations.

Richard R. Santoroski, 56, has served as executive vice president and 
chief analytics officer since January 2021 after joining the company 
in 2020 as a managing director. Mr. Santoroski is responsible for 
leading the company’s analytic strategy intended to inform investment, 
portfolio, and risk-related decisions. Previously, Mr. Santorski served 
as co-founder and managing partner of Wye Holdings from 2017 to 
2020. From 2012 to 2016, he served as co-founder and managing 
director of American Capital Energy and Infrastructure (ACEI)., an 
emerging  markets  investor  in  power  generation  projects  across 
Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Prior to ACEI, 
Mr. Santoroski served as executive vice president, chief risk officer, 
and head of corporate mergers, acquisitions & development of The 
AES Corporation. Prior to joining AES, he worked for several years 
at New York State Electric and Gas as an engineer and energy 
trader. Mr. Santoroski holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical 
engineering from Pennsylvania State University as well as a Master 
of Science degree in electrical engineering and a Master of Business 
Administration degree from Syracuse University.

Katherine McGregor Dent, 48, has served as our senior vice president 
and chief human resources officer since April 2020, focusing on 
culture,  strategy,  and  organizational  development.  Previously,  
Ms. Dent served as vice president, deputy general counsel, and 
assistant secretary from 2003 to 2020, where she played a key role 
in structuring, developing, negotiating, and closing several billions of 
dollars of transactions. Ms. Dent received a Bachelor of Arts in English 
from Niagara University in 1993 and a Juris Doctor from the University 
at Buffalo School of Law in 1996. Ms. Dent serves as the Chair of the 
Board of Trustees for St. Anne’s School of Annapolis.

Charles W. Melko, CPA, 40, has served as a senior vice president 
and our chief accounting officer since 2017 and as our treasurer since 
January 2021. He joined the Company in 2016 as a senior vice president 
and controller and has since been responsible for leading the company’s 
accounting and financial reporting function. In his treasurer role, he is 
involved in the company’s cash management and related capital markets 
activities. He is also responsible for leading the company’s ESG programs 
and continually driving best-practices in ESG disclosures. Previously, he 
served in a number of roles at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP since 2005, 
including as a Senior Manager in the National Professional Services 
Group where he focused on complex financial instruments accounting 
issues for energy clients. Mr. Melko received a Bachelor of Science 
degree in Accountancy in 2002, a Master of Business Administration 
degree in 2005 and a Master of Science degree in Accountancy from 
Wheeling Jesuit University in 2005. He holds a CPA license in West 
Virginia and Maryland.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1A. Risk Factors

Available information
We maintain a website at www.hannonarmstrong.com. Information 
on our website is not incorporated by reference in this Form 10-K. 
We will make available, free of charge, on our website (a) our Form 
10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 
8-K (including any amendments thereto), proxy statements and other 
information (collectively, “Company Documents”) filed with, or furnished 
to, the SEC, as soon as reasonably practicable after such documents 
are so filed or furnished, (b) Corporate Governance Guidelines, 
(c) Director Independence Standards, (d) Code of Business Conduct 
and Ethics policy and (e) written charters of the Audit Committee, 

ITEM 1A.  RISK FACTORS

Compensation Committee, Nominating, Governance and Corporate 
Responsibility Committee and Finance and Risk Committee of our 
board of directors. Company Documents filed with, or furnished to, the 
SEC are also available for review by the public at the SEC’s website 
at www.sec.gov. We provide copies of our Corporate Governance 
Guidelines and Code of Business Conduct and Ethics policy, free of 
charge, to stockholders who request such documents. Requests should 
be directed to Investor Relations, 1906 Towne Centre Blvd, Suite 370, 
Annapolis, Maryland 21401, (410) 571-9860.

Our business and operations are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, the occurrence of which could adversely affect our business, 
financial condition, consolidated results of operations and ability to make distributions to stockholders and could cause the value of our capital 
stock to decline. We may refer to the energy efficiency, renewable energy and the other sustainable infrastructure projects or market collectively as 
sustainable infrastructure projects or the industry. Please also refer to the sections entitled “Forward-Looking Statements” and “Risk Factor Summary”. 

Risks related to our business and our industry

Our business depends in part on U.S. federal, state and 
local government policies and a decline in the level of 
government support could harm our business.

The projects in which we invest typically depend in part on various 
U.S. federal, state or local governmental policies and incentives that 
support or enhance project economic feasibility. Such policies may 
include governmental initiatives, laws and regulations designed to 
reduce energy usage and impact the use of renewable energy or the 
investment in and the use of sustainable infrastructure.

Policies and incentives provided by the U.S. federal government may 
include tax credits (with some of these tax credits that are related 
to  renewable  energy  being  recently  reduced  and  scheduled  to 
be eliminated or phased out in the future), tax deductions, bonus 
depreciation, federal grants and loan guarantees and energy market 
regulations. The value of tax credits, deductions and incentives may 
be impacted by changes in tax laws, rates or regulations.

Incentives provided by state and local governments may include 
renewable portfolio standards (“RPS”), which specify the portion of 
the power utilized by local utilities that must be derived from renewable 
energy sources such as renewable energy as well as the state or 
local government sponsored programs where the financing of energy 
efficiency or renewable energy projects is repaid through a special tax 
assessment against commercial property in accordance with various 
state and local government programs known as C-PACE. Additionally, 
certain states have implemented feed-in tariffs, pursuant to which 
electricity generated from renewable energy sources is purchased at 
a higher rate than prevailing wholesale rates. Other incentives include 
tariffs, tax incentives and other cash and non-cash payments.

Governmental  agencies,  commercial  entities  and  developers  of 
sustainable infrastructure projects frequently depend on these policies 
and incentives to help defray the costs associated with, and to finance, 
various projects. Government regulations also impact the terms of 
third-party financing provided to support these projects. If any of these 
government policies, incentives or regulations are adversely amended, 
delayed, eliminated, reduced, retroactively changed or not extended 

1 2  |   

beyond their current expiration dates, or there is a negative impact 
from the recent federal law changes or proposals, the operating 
results of the projects we finance and the demand for, and the returns 
available from, the investments we make may decline, which could 
harm our business.

U.S. federal, state and local government entities are 
major participants in the sustainable infrastructure 
industry and their actions could be adverse to our projects 
or our company.

The projects we invest in are subject to substantial regulation by U.S. 
federal, state and local governmental agencies. For example, many 
projects require government permits, licenses, concessions, leases 
or contracts. Government entities, due to the wide-ranging scope of 
their authority, have significant leverage in setting their contractual 
and regulatory relationships with third parties. In addition, government 
permits, licenses, concessions, leases and contracts are generally 
very complex, which may result in periods of non-compliance, or 
disputes over interpretation or enforceability. If the projects in which 
we invest fail to obtain or comply with applicable regulations, permits, 
or  contractual  obligations,  they  could  be  prevented  from  being 
constructed or subjected to monetary penalties or loss of operational 
rights, which could negatively impact project operating results and 
the returns on our assets.

Contracts with government counterparties that support the projects 
in  which  we  invest  may  be  more  favorable  to  the  government 
counterparties compared to commercial contracts with private parties. 
For example, a lease, concession or general service contract may 
enable the government to modify or terminate the contract without 
requiring the payment of adequate compensation. Typically, our 
contracts with government counterparties contain termination provisions 
including prepayment amounts. In most cases, the prepayment amounts 
provide us with amounts sufficient to repay the financing we have 
provided but may be less than amounts that would be payable under 
“make whole” provisions customarily found in commercial lending 
arrangements.

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1A. Risk Factors

In addition, government counterparties also may have the discretion 
to change or increase regulation of project operations, or implement 
laws or regulations affecting project operations, separate from any 
contractual rights they may have. These actions could adversely impact 
the efficient and profitable operation of the projects in which we invest.

Government entities may also suspend or debar contractors from 
doing business with the government or pursue various criminal or 
civil remedies under various government contract regulations. They 
may also issue new government contracts or fail to extend existing 
government contracts. Our ability to originate new assets could be 
adversely affected if one or more of the ESCOs or other origination 
sources with whom we have relationships are suspended or debarred 
or fail to win new, or renew existing, contracts.

Changes in the terms of energy savings performance 
contracts could have a material and adverse impact on 
our business.

We derive a portion of our income from the assignment to us of 
payment streams under energy savings performance contracts with 
property owners, including government customers, in which the scope 
and cost of improvements and services are specified. While U.S. 
federal, state and local government rules governing such contracts 
vary, such rules may, for example, permit the funding of such contracts 
through long-term financing arrangements, permit long-term payback 
periods  from  the  savings  realized  through  such  contracts,  allow 
units of government to exclude debt related to such contracts from 
the calculation of their statutory debt limitation, allow for award of 
contracts on a “best value” instead of “lowest cost” basis and allow 
for the use of sole source providers. To the extent these rules become 
more restrictive in the future, our ability to provide financing to support 
these projects could be adversely impacted, which could harm our 
business. Changes in these rules, including retroactive changes, could 
also negatively impact the operating results of the projects we finance 
and the returns on our assets.

A change in the fiscal health, level of appropriations or 
budgets of U.S. federal, state and local governments could 
reduce demand for our investments.

Although our energy efficiency investments do not normally require 
additional governmental appropriations to cover repayment due to 
the energy and operating savings derived from the newly installed 
equipment and systems, a significant decline in the fiscal health, level 
of appropriations or budgets of government customers may make it 
difficult for them to remain current on existing payment obligations or 
undesirable to enter into new energy efficiency improvement projects. 
Alternatively,  some  government  entities  may  choose  to  provide 
appropriations or other credit support for sustainable infrastructure 
projects, which would negatively impact the use of private capital such 
as ours. This could have a material and adverse effect on the return of 
and return on our investments for existing projects and on our ability to 
originate new assets. Moreover, other changes in resources available 
to governments may also impact their willingness to undertake energy 
efficiency projects. For example, an increase in money set aside for 
government expenditures for energy efficiency projects may reduce 
demand for our investments.

In addition, to the extent we make investments that involve direct 
appropriations,  we  will  depend  on  approval  of  the  necessary 

spending for the projects. The repayment of the investment, or the 
return on our asset, could be adversely affected if appropriations for 
any such projects are delayed or terminated.

Because our business depends to a significant extent upon 
relationships with key industry players, our inability to 
maintain or develop these relationships, or the failure of 
these relationships to generate business opportunities, could 
adversely affect our business.

We rely, to a significant extent, on our relationships with key industry 
players in the markets we target. We originate transactions through 
programmatic finance relationships with various parties, including 
global ESCOs. We also originate transactions with renewable energy 
manufacturers, developers and operators who own and operate 
renewable energy projects, including several U.S. utility companies. 
In addition to the net proceeds from past and future debt and equity 
offerings, we have also financed our business by accessing the 
securitization, syndication, or other debt markets, primarily utilizing our 
relationships with insurance companies and commercial banks. We 
also rely on relationships with a variety of key financial participants, 
including institutional investors, senior lenders, and investment and 
commercial banks, as well as leading intermediaries, to complement 
our origination and financing activities. Our inability to maintain or 
develop these relationships, or the failure of these relationships to 
generate business opportunities, could adversely affect our business. 
In addition, individuals and entities with whom we have relationships 
are not obligated to provide us with business opportunities, and, 
therefore, there is no assurance that such relationships will generate 
business opportunities for us.

If the cost of energy generated by traditional sources of 
energy continues to stay or further declines from present 
levels, demand for the projects in which we invest may 
decline.

Many traditional sources of energy such as coal, petroleum based 
fuels and natural gas can be influenced by the price of underlying or 
substitute commodities. While we believe the potential for rising or 
increasingly volatile commodity prices and inflation will spur investment 
in our industry, there have been, and may continue to be, decreases 
in such prices, which may reduce the demand for energy efficiency 
projects or other projects, including renewable energy facilities, that 
do not rely on fossil fuel energy sources. For example, we believe low 
natural gas prices may reduce the demand for projects like renewable 
energy that can substitute for natural gas. Additionally, low natural 
gas prices can adversely affect both the price available to renewable 
energy projects under future power sale agreements and the price of 
the electricity the projects sell on either a forward or a spot-market 
basis. Technological progress in electricity generation, storage or in the 
production of traditional fuels or the discovery of large new deposits 
of traditional fuels could reduce the cost of energy generated from 
those sources and consequently reduce the demand for the types 
of projects in which we invest, which could harm our new business 
origination prospects as well as the value of our existing portfolio. In 
addition, volatility in commodity prices, including energy prices, may 
cause building owners and other parties to be reluctant to commit to 
projects for which repayment is based upon a fixed monetary value for 
energy savings that would not decline if the price of energy declines. 
Any resulting decline in demand for our investments or the price that 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

industry participants receive for the sale of fossil fuel could adversely 
impact our operating results.

If the market for various types of sustainable infrastructure 
projects or the investment techniques related to such projects 
do not develop as we anticipate, new business generation in 
this target area may be adversely impacted.

The market for various types of sustainable infrastructure projects such 
as renewable energy projects, commercial office building energy 
efficiency projects, electricity storage, and storm water and various 
other  sustainable  infrastructure  projects  is  emerging  and  rapidly 
evolving, leaving their future success uncertain. Similarly, various 
investing techniques, such as leasing land for renewable energy 
projects, purchasing interests in existing renewable energy projects, 
the use of C-PACE financing and the use of taxable debt for state 
and local energy efficiency or sustainable infrastructure financings are 
emerging and the future success of these investing techniques is also 
uncertain. If some or all market segments or investing techniques prove 
unsuitable for widespread commercial deployment or if demand for 
such projects or techniques fail to grow sufficiently, the demand for 
our capital may decline or develop more slowly than we anticipate. 
Many factors will influence the widespread adoption and demand for 
such projects and investing techniques, including general and local 
economic conditions, commodity prices of fossil fuel energy sources, 
the cost and availability of energy storage, the cost-effectiveness 
of various projects and techniques, performance and reliability of 
such technologies compared to conventional power sources and 
technologies, and the extent of government subsidies and regulatory 
developments. Any changes in the markets, products, technologies, 
financing techniques, or the regulatory environment could adversely 
impact the demand or financial performance for such projects and 
our investments.

In addition, renewable energy projects rely on electric and other 
types of transmission lines and facilities owned and operated by third 
parties to receive and distribute their energy. Any substantial access 
barriers to these lines and facilities could make projects that depend 
on them more expensive, which could adversely impact the demand 
or financial performance for such projects and our investments.

Existing electric utility industry regulations, and changes 
to regulations, may present technical, regulatory and 
economic barriers to the purchase and use of renewable 
energy and energy efficiency systems that may significantly 
reduce demand for systems in which we can invest.

Federal,  state  and  local  government  regulations  and  policies 
concerning  the  electric  utility  industry,  and  internal  policies  and 
regulations promulgated by electric utilities, heavily influence the market 
for electricity products and services. These regulations and policies 
often relate to electricity pricing and the interconnection of customer-
owned electricity generation. In the United States, governments and 
utilities continuously modify these regulations and policies. These 
regulations and policies could deter customers from purchasing energy 
efficiency and renewable energy systems. For example, Federal 
Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) recently conducted its own 
review of grid resiliency and the functioning of electricity markets and 
has made, and could continue to make, changes to policies and 
regulations related to the function of the electricity markets and grid 
resiliency which may negatively impact the use of renewable energy 

or encourage the use of fossil fuel energy over renewable energy. This 
could result in a significant reduction in the potential demand for such 
systems. Utilities commonly charge fees to larger, industrial customers 
for disconnecting from the electric grid or for having the capacity to 
use power from the electric grid for back-up purposes. In addition, 
there is an increasing trend towards initiating or increasing fixed fees 
for users to have electricity service from a utility. These fees could 
increase our customers’ cost to use energy efficiency and renewable 
energy systems not supplied by the utility and make them less desirable, 
thereby harming our business, prospects, financial condition and results 
of operations. In addition, any changes to government or internal 
utility regulations and policies that favor electric utilities could reduce 
competitiveness and cause a significant reduction in demand for 
systems in which we invest.

Some projects in which we invest rely on net metering 
and related policies to improve project economics which if 
reduced could impact repayment of our investments or the 
return on our assets.

There has been a nationwide increase in distributed generation 
which has prompted discussions among policy makers and regulators 
regarding ways to both better integrate distributed energy resources 
into the electric grid and how to compensate distributed generators. 
Many states have a regulatory policy known as net energy metering, 
or net metering. Net metering typically allows some project customers 
to interconnect their on-site solar or other renewable energy systems to 
the utility grid and offset their utility electricity purchases by receiving 
a bill credit at the utility’s retail rate for the amount of energy in excess 
of their electric usage that is generated by their renewable energy 
system and is exported to the grid. At the end of the billing period, 
the customer simply pays for the net energy used or receives a credit 
at the retail rate if more energy is produced than consumed. Net 
metering policies are under review or have been limited or amended 
in a number of states. The ability and willingness of customers to pay 
for renewable energy systems which benefit from net metering rules 
may be reduced if net metering rules are eliminated or their benefits 
reduced, which may also impact our returns on such systems.

Sustainable infrastructure projects that involve the 
generation, transmission or sale of electricity such as 
renewable energy projects may be subject to regulation 
by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission under the 
Federal Power Act or other regulations that regulate the sale 
of electricity, which may adversely affect the profitability of 
such projects.

Sustainable  infrastructure  projects  that  involve  the  generation, 
transmission or sale of electricity such as renewable energy projects 
may be “qualifying facilities” that are exempt from regulation as public 
utilities by the “FERC under the Federal Power Act, (the “FPA”) while 
certain other such projects may be subject to rate regulation by the 
FERC under the FPA. FERC regulations under the FPA confer upon these 
qualifying facilities key rights to interconnection with local utilities and 
can entitle such facilities to enter into PPAs with local utilities, from 
which the qualifying facilities benefit. Changes to these U.S. federal 
laws and regulations could increase the regulatory burdens and costs 
and could reduce the revenue of the project. In addition, modifications 
to the pricing policies of utilities could require sustainable infrastructure 
projects to achieve lower prices in order to compete with the price 

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of electricity from the electric grid and may reduce the economic 
attractiveness of certain energy efficiency measures. To the extent 
that the projects in which we invest are subject to rate regulation, the 
project owners will be required to obtain FERC acceptance of their 
rate schedules for wholesale sales of energy, capacity and ancillary 
services. Any changes in the rates project owners are permitted to 
charge could impact the repayment of our investments, or the return 
on our assets.

In addition, the operation of, and electrical interconnection for, our 
sustainable infrastructure projects may be subject to U.S. federal, state 
or local interconnection and federal reliability standards, some of 
which are set forth in utility tariffs. These standards and tariffs specify 
rules, business practices and economic terms to which the projects 
where we invest are subject and which may impact a project’s ability 
to deliver the electricity it produces or transports to its end customer. 
The tariffs are drafted by the utilities and approved by the utilities’ state 
and U.S. federal regulatory commissions. These standards and tariffs 
change frequently and it is possible that future changes will increase 
our administrative burden or adversely affect the terms and conditions 
under which the projects render services to their customers.

In addition, under certain circumstances, we may also be subject 
to the reliability standards of the North American Electric Reliability 
Corporation. If project owners fail to comply with the mandatory 
reliability standards, they could be subject to sanctions, including 
substantial monetary penalties, which could also raise credit risks for, 
or lower the returns available from, the projects in which we invest.

These various regulations may also limit the transferability or sale of 
renewable energy projects and any such limits could negatively impact 
our returns from such projects.

Unfavorable publicity or public perception of the industries 
in which we operate could adversely impact our operating 
results and our reputation.

The sustainable infrastructure industry, including various forms of 
renewable energy and C-PACE financings receives significant media 
coverage that, whether or not directly related to our business or our 
projects, can adversely impact our reputation and the demand for our 
investments. Similarly, negative publicity or public perception of the 
renewable energy industry or the broader energy industries in which 
we operate or of climate change in general could reduce demand for 
our investments and our projects’ services. Any reduction in demand for 
sustainable infrastructure projects or for our investments could damage 
our reputation or could have a material adverse effect on our results 
of operations and business prospects.

We operate in a competitive market and future competition 
may impact the terms of our investments.

We compete against a number of parties who may provide alternatives 
to our investments including specialty finance companies, savings 
and loan associations, banks, private equity, hedge or infrastructure 
investment funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, institutional 
investors, investment banking firms, financial institutions, utilities, 

independent power producers, project developers, pension funds, 
government entities, public entities established to own infrastructure 
assets and other entities. The continued low interest rate environment 
and increasing investor acceptance of the sustainable infrastructure 
market have increased the level of competition we experience. We 
also encounter competition in the form of potential customers or our 
origination partners electing to use their own capital rather than 
engaging an outside provider such as us. In addition, we may also face 
competition based on technological developments that reduce demand 
for electricity, increase power supplies through existing infrastructure 
or that otherwise compete with our sustainable infrastructure projects. 
Some of our competitors are significantly larger than we are, have 
access to greater capital and other resources than we do and may 
have other advantages over us. In addition, some of our competitors 
may have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments, which 
could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and 
establish more relationships than we can. In addition, many of our 
competitors are not subject to the operating constraints associated with 
REIT tax compliance or maintenance of an exemption from the 1940 
Act. These characteristics could allow our competitors to consider a 
wider variety of opportunities, establish more relationships and offer 
better pricing and more flexible structuring than we can offer. We 
may lose business opportunities if we do not match our competitors’ 
pricing, terms and structure. If we match our competitors’ pricing, terms 
and structure, we may not be able to achieve acceptable risk-adjusted 
returns on our assets or we may be forced to bear greater risks of 
loss. The increase in the number and/or the size of our competitors in 
this market has resulted, and could continue to result, in less attractive 
terms on our investments or the need to accept a higher level of risks 
associated with our investments. As a result, competitive pressures we 
face could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial 
condition and results of operations.

Our business is affected by seasonal trends and construction 
cycles, and these trends and cycles could have an adverse 
effect on our operating results.

The volume and timing of our originations are subject to seasonal 
fluctuations  and  construction  cycles,  particularly  in  climates  that 
experience colder weather during the winter months, such as the 
northern United States, or at educational institutions, where large 
projects are typically carried out during summer months when their 
facilities are unoccupied. In addition, government customers, many 
of which have fiscal years that do not coincide with ours, typically 
follow annual procurement cycles. Further, government contracting 
cycles can be affected by the timing of, and delays in, the legislative 
process related to government programs, funding, or incentives that 
help drive demand for sustainable infrastructure projects. As a result 
of such fluctuations, we may occasionally experience fluctuations 
in the timing of new asset opportunities or declines in revenue or 
earnings as compared to the immediately preceding quarter, and 
comparisons of our operating results on a period-to-period basis may 
not be meaningful.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Risks related to our assets and projects in which we invest

Changes in interest rates could adversely affect the value of 
our assets and negatively affect our profitability.

Interest  rates  are  highly  sensitive  to  many  factors,  including 
governmental monetary and tax policies, domestic and international 
economic and political considerations and other factors beyond our 
control. Many of our assets pay a fixed rate of interest or provide a 
fixed preferential return.

With respect to our business operations, increases in interest rates, in 
general, may over time cause: (1) project owners to be less interested 
in borrowing or raising equity and thus reduce the demand for our 
investments; (2) the interest expense associated with our borrowings 
to increase; (3) the market value of our fixed rate or fixed return 
assets to decline; and (4) the market value of our interest rate swap 
agreements to increase. Conversely, decreases in interest rates, in 
general, may over time cause: (1) project owners to be more interested 
in borrowing or raising equity and thus increase the demand for 
our assets; (2) prepayments on our assets, to the extent allowed, to 
increase; (3) the interest expense associated with our borrowings to 
decrease; (4) the market value of our fixed rate or fixed return assets to 
increase; and (5) the market value of our interest rate swap agreements 
to decrease. Adverse developments resulting from changes in interest 
rates could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial 
condition and results of operations.

The lack of liquidity of our assets may adversely affect our 
business, including our ability to value and sell our assets.

Volatile market conditions could significantly and negatively impact the 
liquidity of our assets. Illiquid assets typically experience greater price 
volatility, as a ready market does not exist, and can be more difficult 
to value. In addition, validating third-party pricing for illiquid assets 
may be more subjective than more liquid assets. The illiquidity of our 
assets may make it difficult for us to sell such assets if the need or desire 
arises. In addition, if we are required to liquidate all or a portion of 
our Portfolio quickly, we may realize significantly less than the value at 
which we have previously recorded our assets. To the extent that we 
utilize leverage to finance our investments that are or become illiquid, 
the negative impact on us related to trying to sell assets in a short 
period of time for cash could be greatly exacerbated. As a result, our 
ability to vary our portfolio in response to changes in economic and 
other conditions may be relatively limited, which could adversely affect 
our results of operations and financial condition.

Provisions for loan losses are difficult to estimate.

Our provision for loan losses is evaluated on a quarterly basis. The 
determination of our provision for loan losses requires us to make 
certain estimates and judgments, which may be difficult to determine. 
Our estimates and judgments are based on a number of factors, 
including a project’s operating results, loan-to-value ratio, any cash 
reserve, the ability of expected cash from operations to cover the 
cash flow requirements currently and into the future, key terms of the 
transaction, the ability of the borrower to refinance the transaction, 
other credit support from the sponsor or guarantor and the project’s 
collateral  value.  In  addition,  we  consider  the  overall  economic 
environment, the sustainable infrastructure sector, the effect of local, 
industry, and broader economic factors, the impact of any variation 
in weather and the historical and anticipated trends in interest rates, 
defaults and loss severities for similar transactions.

Our estimates and judgments may not be correct and, therefore, 
our results of operations and financial condition could be severely 
impacted.

In  June  2016,  the  FASB  issued  ASU  No.  2016-13,  Financial 
Instruments-Credit Losses-Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial 
Instruments (Topic 326), which is effective for accounting periods 
beginning after December 15, 2019 and replaces the current “incurred 
loss” model for recognizing credit losses with an “expected loss” 
model referred to as the Current Expected Credit Loss (“CECL”) model. 
Under the CECL model, we are required to present certain financial 
assets carried at amortized cost, such as loans held for investment, 
at the net amount expected to be collected. The measurement of 
expected credit losses is to be based on information about past events, 
including historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable 
and supportable forecasts that affect the collectability of the reported 
amount. This measurement will take place at the time the financial asset 
is first added to the balance sheet and updated quarterly thereafter. 
This differs significantly from the “incurred loss” model required under 
current accounting principles generally accepted in the United States 
(“GAAP”), which delays recognition until it is probable a loss has 
been incurred.

Accordingly, the adoption of the CECL model has affected how we 
determine our allowance for loan losses and is requiring us to increase 
our allowance and recognize provisions for loan losses earlier in the 
lending cycle. Moreover, the CECL model may create more volatility 
in the level of our allowance for loan losses. If our required level of 
allowance for loan losses is material for any reason, such increase 
could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of 
operations.

We may experience a decline in the fair value of our assets.

A decline in the fair market value of available-for-sale securities, any 
receivables we hold for sale, our interest rate hedges, if any, or any 
other assets which we may carry at fair value in the future, may require 
us to reduce the value of such assets under GAAP. In addition, our other 
financial assets are subject to an impairment assessment that could 
result in adjustments to their carrying values. Upon the subsequent 
disposition or sale of such assets, we could incur future losses or 
gains based on the difference between the sale price received and 
adjusted value of such assets as reflected on our balance sheet at 
the time of sale.

Some of the assets in our portfolio may be recorded at fair 
value and, as a result, there could be uncertainty as to the 
value of these assets.

Our investments are not publicly traded. The fair value of assets that are 
not publicly traded may not be readily determinable. In accordance 
with GAAP, we record certain of our assets at fair value, which may 
include unobservable inputs. Because such valuations are subjective, 
the fair value of these assets may fluctuate over short periods of time 
and our determinations of fair value may differ materially from the 
values that would have been used if a ready market for these assets 
existed. The value of our common stock could be adversely affected 
if our determinations regarding the fair value of these assets were 
materially higher than the values that we ultimately realize upon their 
disposal. Additionally, our results of operations for a given period 
could be adversely affected if our determinations regarding the fair 

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value of these assets were materially higher than the values that we 
ultimately realize upon their disposal. The valuation process can be 
particularly challenging during periods when market events make 
valuations of certain assets more difficult, unpredictable and volatile.

We may not realize income or gains from our assets, which 
could cause the value of our common stock to decline.

We seek to provide attractive risk-adjusted returns to our stockholders. 
However, our assets may not appreciate in value and, in fact, may 
decline in value, and the assets we originate or acquire may default 
or not perform in accordance with our expectations. Accordingly, 
we may not be able to realize gains or income from our assets. Any 
gains that we do realize may not be sufficient to offset any other losses 
we experience. Any income that we realize may not be sufficient to 
offset our expenses.

The majority of our investments are not rated by a rating 
agency, which may result in an amount of risk, volatility 
or potential loss of principal that is greater than that of 
alternative asset opportunities.

The majority of our investments are not rated by any rating agency 
and we expect that most of the assets we originate and acquire in 
the future will not be rated by any rating agency. Although we focus 
on sustainable infrastructure projects with high credit quality obligors, 
we believe that some of the projects or obligors in which we invest, 
if rated, would be rated below investment grade, due to speculative 
characteristics of the project or the obligor’s capacity to pay interest 
and repay principal or pay dividends. Some of our assets may result in 
an amount of risk, volatility or potential loss of principal that is greater 
than that of alternative asset opportunities.

Any credit ratings assigned to our assets, debt or obligors 
are subject to ongoing evaluations and revisions and 
we cannot assure you that those ratings will not be 
downgraded.

To the extent our assets, their underlying obligors, or our debt are rated 
by credit rating agencies or by our internal rating process, such assets, 
obligors or our debt will be subject to ongoing evaluation by credit 
rating agencies and our internal rating process, and we cannot assure 
you that any ratings will not be changed or withdrawn in the future. 
If rating agencies assign a lower-than-expected rating or if a rating is 
further reduced or withdrawn by a rating agency or us, or if there are 
indications of a potential reduction or withdrawal of the ratings of our 
assets, the underlying obligors or our debt in the future, the value of 
these assets could significantly decline, the level of borrowings based 
on such asset could be reduced or we could incur higher borrowing 
costs or incur losses upon disposition or the failure of obligors to satisfy 
their obligations to us.

Our investments are subject to delinquency, foreclosure and 
loss, any or all of which could result in losses to us.

Our investments are subject to risks of delinquency, foreclosure and 
loss. In many cases, the ability of a borrower to return our invested 
capital and our expected return is dependent primarily upon the 
successful development, construction and operation of the underlying 
project. If the cash flow of the project is reduced, the borrower’s ability 
to return our capital and our expected return may be impaired. We 

make certain estimates regarding project cash flows or savings during 
the underwriting of our investment. These estimates may not prove 
accurate, as actual results may vary from estimates. The cash flows 
or cost savings of a project can be affected by, among other things: 
the terms of the power purchase or other use agreements used in such 
project; the creditworthiness of the off-taker or project user; price of 
power or services now and in the future; the technology deployed; 
unanticipated expenses in the development or operation of the project 
and changes in national, regional, state or local economic conditions, 
laws and regulations; and acts of God, terrorism, social unrest and 
civil disturbances.

In the event of any default or shortfall of an investment, we will bear 
a risk of loss of principal or equity to the extent of any deficiency 
between the value of the collateral, if any, and the amount of our 
investment, which could have a material adverse effect on our cash 
flow from operations and may impact the cash available for distribution 
to our stockholders. Many of the projects are structured as special 
purpose limited liability companies which limits our ability to realize 
any recovery to the collateral or value of the project itself. In the event 
of the bankruptcy of a project owner, obligor, or other borrower, our 
investment or the project will be deemed to be subject to the avoidance 
powers of the bankruptcy trustee or debtor-in-possession and our or 
the project’s contractual rights may be unenforceable under federal 
bankruptcy or state law. Foreclosure proceedings against a project can 
be an expensive and lengthy process, which could have a substantial 
negative effect on our anticipated return on the foreclosed investment.

Our sustainable infrastructure projects may incur liabilities 
that rank equally with, or senior to, our investments in such 
projects.

We provide a range of investment structures, including various types 
of debt and equity securities, senior and subordinated loans, real 
property leases, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and common 
equity. Our projects may have, or may be permitted to incur, other 
liabilities or equity preferences that rank equally with, or senior to, 
our positions or investments in such projects or businesses, as the 
case may be, including with respect to grants of collateral. By their 
terms, such instruments may entitle the holders to receive payment 
of interest, principal payments or other distributions on or before the 
dates on which we are entitled to receive payments with respect to 
the instruments in which we invest. Also, in the event of insolvency, 
liquidation, dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of an entity 
in which we have invested, holders of instruments ranking senior to 
our investment in that project or business would typically be entitled 
to receive payment in full before we receive any distribution. After 
repaying such senior stakeholders, such project may not have any 
remaining assets to use for repaying its obligation to us. In the case 
of securities ranking equally with instruments we hold, we would have 
to share on an equal basis any distributions with other stakeholders 
holding such instruments in the event of an insolvency, liquidation, 
dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of the relevant project.

Our mezzanine or subordinated loans are less protected 
against losses than senior debt.

We make or acquire mezzanine and subordinated loans, which are 
loans made to project owners for sustainable infrastructure projects 
that are subordinate to other more senior interest or are secured by 
pledges of the borrower’s ownership interests in the project and/or 

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the project owner. These mezzanine and subordinated loans may be 
subordinate to senior secured loans on the projects or to the returns 
required by the investors focused on the tax attributes in a project, 
known as tax equity investors, but senior to the project owner’s equity. 
In the event a borrower defaults on a loan and lacks sufficient assets to 
satisfy our mezzanine or subordinated financing, we may suffer a loss 
of principal or interest. In the event a borrower declares bankruptcy, 
we may not have full recourse to the assets of the borrower, or the 
assets of the borrower may not be sufficient to satisfy our mezzanine 
or subordinated loan. In addition, mezzanine or subordinated loans 
are by their nature structurally subordinated to more senior project level 
investments, and in some cases, to tax equity investors. If a borrower 
defaults on our mezzanine or subordinated loan, on its obligations 
to the tax equity investor or on debt or other obligations senior to 
our loan, or if a borrower declares bankruptcy, our mezzanine or 
subordinated loan will be satisfied only after the project level debt or 
other obligations or tax equity and other senior debt is paid in full. 
Significant losses related to our mezzanine or subordinated loans 
would result in operating losses for us and may limit our ability to make 
distributions to our stockholders.

Our subordinated and mezzanine debt and equity 
investments, many of which are illiquid with no readily 
available market, involve a substantial degree of risk.

We make subordinated and mezzanine debt and equity investments 
which may fail to be repaid or appreciate and may decline in value or 
become worthless and our ability to recover our investment will depend 
on the success of the project in which we make such investments. 
Subordinated and mezzanine debt and equity investments involve a 
number of significant risks, including:

zz such investments could be subject to further dilution as a result of 
the issuance of additional debt or equity interests and to serious 
risks because subordinated and mezzanine debt are subordinate 
to other indebtedness and in some cases, project tax equity, and 
equity interests are subordinate to all indebtedness (including trade 
creditors) and any senior securities in the event that the issuer is 
unable to meet its obligations or becomes subject to a bankruptcy 
process;

zz to the extent that a project in which we invest requires additional 
capital and is unable to obtain it, we may not recover our investment; 
and

zz in some cases, subordinated and mezzanine debt may not pay 
current interest or principal or equity investments may not pay current 
dividends, and our ability to realize a return on our investment, as 
well as to recover our investment, will be dependent on the success 
of the project in which we invest. The project may face unanticipated 
costs or delays or may not generate projected cash flows which 
could lead to the project generating lower than expected rates of 
return.

We generally do not control the projects in which we invest.

Although the covenants in our financing or investment documentation 
generally restrict certain actions that may be taken by project owners, 
we generally do not control the projects in which we invest. As a result, 
we are subject to the risk that the project owner may make certain 
business decisions or take risks with which we disagree or otherwise 
act in ways that do not serve our interests.

We invest in joint ventures and other similar arrangements 
that subject us to additional risks.

Some of our projects are structured as joint ventures, partnerships, 
securitizations, syndications and consortium arrangements. Part of 
our strategy is to participate with other institutional investors or the 
project’s sponsor on various sustainable infrastructure transactions. 
These arrangements are driven by the magnitude of capital required to 
complete acquisitions and the development of sustainable infrastructure 
projects and other industry-wide trends that we believe will continue. 
Such arrangements involve risks not present where a third party is not 
involved, including the possibility that partners or co-venturers might 
become bankrupt or otherwise fail to fund their share of required 
capital contributions. Additionally, partners or co-venturers might at 
any time have economic or other business interests or goals different 
from ours. These investments generally provide for a reduced level of 
control over an acquired project because governance rights are shared 
with others. Accordingly, project decisions relating to the management, 
operation and the timing and nature of any exit, are often made 
by a majority vote of the investors or by separate agreements that 
are reached with respect to individual decisions. In addition, project 
operations may be subject to the risk that the project owners may make 
business, financial or management choices with which we do not 
agree or the management of the project may take risks or otherwise 
act in a manner that does not serve our interests. Because we may 
not have the ability to exercise control, we may not be able to realize 
some or all of the benefits expected from our investment. If any of the 
foregoing were to occur, our business, financial condition and results 
of operations could suffer as a result.

In addition, some of our joint ventures, partnerships, and equity 
investments, subject the sale or transfer of our interests in these projects 
to rights of first refusal or first offer, tag along or drag along rights and 
buy-sell, call-put or other restrictions. Such rights may be triggered at 
a time when we may not want them to be exercised and such rights 
may inhibit our ability to sell our interest in an entity within our desired 
time frame or on any other desired terms.

Energy efficiency, renewable energy and other sustainable 
infrastructure projects are subject to performance risks, 
including risks due to extreme weather events, that could 
impact the repayment of and the return on our assets.

Energy  efficiency,  renewable  energy  and  other  sustainable 
infrastructure projects are subject to various construction and operating 
delays and risks that may cause them to incur higher than expected 
costs or generate less than expected amounts of savings or outputs 
such as electricity in the case of a renewable energy project. These 
risks include, extreme weather events, construction delays, a failure 
or degradation of our, our customers’ or the utilities’ equipment; 
obsolescence of, or an inability to find suitable, equipment or parts; 
labor shortages; less than expected supply of a project’s source of 
renewable energy, such as solar insolation and wind; or a faster 
than expected diminishment of such supply. Further, many projects in 
which we invest will be subject to competitive risks and to volatility 
in commodity prices including the price of energy. Any extended 
interruption in the project’s construction or operation, any cost overrun 
or failure of the project for any reason to generate the expected amount 
of output or cash flow, could have a material adverse effect on the 
repayment of and the return on our assets.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Many of our assets depend on revenues from third-party 
contractual arrangements.

Many of the projects in which we invest rely on revenue or repayment 
from contractual commitments of end-customers, including federal, 
state or local governments for energy efficiency projects or utilities 
or other customers under PPAs. There is a risk that these customers 
may default under their contracts. In addition, many of these end-
customers are large entities with wide ranging activities. An event 
in a non-related part of the business could have a material adverse 
impact on the financial strength of such end-customer such as the 
effect of recent wildfires on the California utilities. Furthermore, the 
bankruptcy, insolvency or other liquidity constraints of one or more 
customers may result in a renegotiation or rejection of the third-
party contract, delay the receipt of any obligations or reduce the 
likelihood of collecting defaulted obligations. Some projects rely 
on one customer for their revenue and thus the project could be 
materially and adversely affected by any material change in the 
financial condition of that customer. While there may be alternative 
customers for such a project, there can be no assurance that a new 
contract on the same terms will be able to be negotiated for the 
project.

Certain of our projects with contractually committed revenues or other 
sources of repayment under long term contracts will be subject to 
re-contracting risk in the future. We cannot provide assurance that 
these  contracts  can  be  re-negotiated  once  their  terms  expire  on 
equally favorable terms or at all. If it is not possible to renegotiate 
these contracts on favorable terms, our business, financial condition, 
results of operations and prospects could be materially and adversely 
affected.

Revenues at some of the projects in which we invest depend on 
reliable and efficient metering, or other revenue collection systems, 
which are often specified in the contract. There is a risk that, if one 
or more of such projects are not able to operate and maintain the 
metering or other revenue collection systems in the manner expected, 
if the operation and maintenance costs, are greater than expected, 
or if the customer disputes the output of the revenue collection system, 
the ability of the project to repay our investments or provide a return 
to us on our asset could be materially and adversely affected.

We are exposed to the credit risk of ESCOs, various project 
sponsors, and others.

We are subject to varying degrees of credit risk related to ESCOs in 
government energy efficiency projects in which guarantees provided 
by ESCOs under energy savings performance contracts are required in 
the event that certain energy savings are not realized by the customer. 
We are also exposed to credit risk in projects in which we invest that 
do not depend on funding from governments. 

Where we make loans to or own equity interests in special purposes 
entities such as those which lease solar energy systems to residential 
customers, those special purpose entities often enter into various 
contractual arrangements with, or receive performance guarantees 
from the affiliate project sponsor to ensure satisfactory equipment 
or other project performance over the term of the lease or power 
purchase agreement. To the extent those parties are unable to perform 
on their contractual obligations or performance guarantees we may 
see diminished equity returns or the special purpose entity may be 
unable to repay their loan timely or at all.

We seek to mitigate these credit risks by employing a comprehensive 
review and asset selection process and careful ongoing monitoring 
of acquired assets. Nevertheless, unanticipated credit losses could 
occur which could adversely impact our operating results. During 
periods of economic downturn in the global economy, our exposure 
to credit risks from obligors increases, and our efforts to monitor and 
mitigate the associated risks may not be effective in reducing our 
credit risks. Certain participants in the sustainable energy industry 
have experienced significant declines in the value of their equity 
and difficulty in raising or refinancing debt, which increases the 
credit risk to these companies and there can be no assurance they 
will be able to fulfill their obligations which could adversely impact 
our operating results.

Some of the projects in which we invest have sold their 
output under PPAs which expose the projects to various 
risks.

Some of our projects enter into PPAs when they contract to sell all 
or a fixed proportion of the electricity generated by the project, 
sometimes bundled with renewable energy credits and capacity or 
other environmental attributes, to a power purchaser, often a utility, or 
increasingly, a corporation. PPAs are used to stabilize our revenues 
from that project. We are exposed to the risk that the power purchaser, 
who we consider an obligor, will fail to perform under a PPA or 
the PPA will be terminated or expire, which will lead to that project 
needing to sell its electricity at the then market price, which could be 
substantially lower than the price provided in the applicable PPA. 
In most instances, the project also commits to sell minimum levels of 
generation. If the project generates less than the committed volumes, 
it may be required to buy the shortfall of electricity on the open market 
or make payments of liquidated damages or be in default under a 
PPA, which could result in its termination. In the event that any of these 
events were to occur, our business, financial condition and results of 
operations could suffer as a result.

Portions of the electricity our assets generate is sold on 
the open market at spot-market prices. A prolonged 
environment of low prices for natural gas, or other 
conventional fuel sources such as we are experiencing may, 
and could continue to, have a material adverse effect on our 
long-term business prospects, financial condition and results 
of operations.

Historically low prices for traditional fossil fuels, particularly natural 
gas, could cause demand for renewable energy to decrease and 
they have, and may continue to, adversely affect both the future sale 
price of energy under new PPAs and the current sale price of energy 
sold on a spot-market basis. Low PPA and spot market power prices, 
if combined with other factors, can have a material adverse effect 
on our projects and their respective values and our expected returns, 
results of operations and cash available for distribution. 

The ability of our assets to generate revenue from certain 
projects depends on having interconnection arrangements 
and services.

The future success of our assets will depend, in part, on their ability to 
maintain satisfactory interconnection agreements. If the interconnection 
or transmission agreement of a project is terminated for any reason, they 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

may not be able to replace it with an interconnection and transmission 
arrangement on terms as favorable as the existing arrangement, or at 
all, or they may experience significant delays or costs in connection 
with securing a replacement. If a network to which one or more 
of the projects is connected experiences equipment or operational 
problems or other forms of “down time,” the affected project may lose 
revenue and be exposed to non-performance penalties and claims 
from its customers. These may include claims for damages incurred 
by customers, such as the additional cost of acquiring alternative 
electricity supply at then-current spot market rates. The owners of the 
network will not usually compensate electricity generators for lost 
income due to down time. In addition, our projects may be exposed 
to a locational basis risk resulting from a difference between where the 
power is generated and the contracted delivery point. These factors 
could materially affect these projects, which could negatively affect 
our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flow.

Our projects and their obligors are exposed to an increase 
in climate change or other change in meteorological 
conditions which could have an impact on electric 
generation, revenue, insurance costs or the ability of the 
projects or their obligors to honor their contract obligations, 
all of which could adversely affect our business, financial 
condition and results of operations and cash flows.

The electricity produced and revenues generated by a renewable 
electric generation facility are highly dependent on suitable weather 
conditions, which are beyond our control. Components of renewable 
energy systems, such as turbines, solar panels and inverters, could 
be  damaged  by  natural  disasters  or  severe  weather,  including 
extreme temperatures, wildfires, hurricanes, hailstorms or tornadoes. 
Furthermore, the potential physical impacts of climate change may 
impact our projects, including the result of changes in weather patterns 
(including floods, tsunamis, drought, and rainfall levels), wind speeds, 
water availability, storm patterns and intensities, and temperature 
levels. The projects in which we invest will be obligated to bear the 
expense of repairing the damaged renewable energy systems and 
replacing spare parts for key components and insurance may not 
cover the costs or the lost revenue. Natural disasters or unfavorable 
weather and atmospheric conditions could impair the effectiveness of 
the renewable energy assets, reduce their output beneath their rated 
capacity, require shutdown of key equipment or impede operation 
of the renewable energy assets, which could adversely affect our 
business, financial condition and results of operations and cash flows. 
Sustained unfavorable weather could also unexpectedly delay the 
installation of renewable energy systems, which could result in a delay 
in our investing in new projects or increase the cost of such projects. 
The resulting effects of climate change can also have an impact on 
the cost of, and the ability of a project to obtain, adequate insurance 
coverage to protect against related losses. 

We typically base our investment decisions with respect to each 
renewable energy facility on the findings of studies conducted on-
site prior to construction or based on historical conditions at existing 
facilities. However, actual climatic conditions at a facility site may 
not conform to the findings of these studies. Even if an operating 
project’s historical renewable energy resources are consistent with the 
long-term estimates, the unpredictable nature of weather conditions 
often results in daily, monthly and yearly material deviations from the 

average renewable resources anticipated during a particular period. 
Therefore, renewable energy facilities in which we invest may not meet 
anticipated production levels or the rated capacity of the generation 
assets, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition 
and results of operations and cash flows.

The amount of electricity renewable energy generation assets produce 
is also dependent in part on the time of year. For example, because 
shorter daylight hours in winter months results in less solar irradiation, 
the generation of particular assets will vary depending on the season. 
Further, time-of-day pricing factors vary seasonally which contributes 
to variability of revenues. As a result, we expect the revenue and 
cash flow from certain of our assets to vary based on the time of year.

In addition, many of the project’s end-customers are large entities with 
wide ranging activities. A climate related event in a non-related part 
of the business could have a material adverse impact on the financial 
strength of such end-customer and their ability to honor their contractual 
obligations which could negatively impact on revenue and the cash 
flow of the project and our business.

Operation of the projects in which we invest involves 
significant risks and hazards customary to our investees 
that could have a material adverse effect on our business, 
financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

The ongoing operation of the projects in which we invest involves 
risks that include the breakdown or failure of equipment or processes 
or performance below expected levels of output or efficiency due to 
wear and tear, latent defect, design error or operator error or force 
majeure events, among other things. In addition to natural risks such 
as earthquake, flood, drought, lightning, wildfire, hurricane, ice, wind, 
and temperature extremes, other hazards, such as fire, explosion, 
structural collapse and machinery failure, acts of terrorism or related 
acts of war, hostile cyber intrusions or other catastrophic events are 
inherent risks in the operation of a project. These and other hazards 
can cause significant personal injury or loss of life, severe damage to 
and destruction of property, plant and equipment and contamination 
of, or damage to, the environment and suspension of operations. 
Operation of a project also involves risks that the operator will be 
unable to transport its product to its customers in an efficient manner 
due to a lack of transmission capacity. Unplanned outages of projects, 
including extensions of scheduled outages due to mechanical failures 
or other problems, occur from time to time and are an inherent risk 
of the business. Unplanned outages typically increase operation 
and maintenance expenses and may reduce revenues as a result of 
selling less electricity or require the project to incur significant costs 
as a result of obtaining replacement power from third parties in the 
open market to satisfy forward power sales obligations. The project’s 
inability to operate its assets efficiently, manage capital expenditures 
and costs and generate earnings and cash flow could have a material 
adverse effect on our investment and our business, financial condition, 
results of operations and cash flows. While the projects maintain 
insurance, obtain warranties from vendors and obligate contractors 
to meet certain performance levels, the proceeds of such insurance, 
warranties or performance guarantees may not cover the lost revenues, 
increased expenses or liquidated damages payments should the 
project experience any equipment breakdowns, insurance claims or 
non-performance by contractors or vendors.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Some of the projects in which we invest may require 
substantial operating or capital expenditures in the future.

Many of the projects in which we invest are capital intensive and 
require substantial ongoing expenditures for, among other things, 
additions and improvements, and maintenance and repair of plant 
and equipment related to project operations. In addition, there may 
be cash needs to settle certain contractual obligations of the projects, 
such as settlements or margining requirements related to hedging 
activities. While we do not typically bear the responsibility for these 
expenditures, any failure by the equity owner to make necessary 
operating or capital expenditures could adversely impact project 
performance. In addition, some of these expenditures may not be 
recoverable from current or future contractual arrangements.

The use of real property rights that we acquire or are used 
for our sustainable infrastructure projects may be adversely 
affected by the rights of lienholders and leaseholders that 
are superior to those of the grantors of those real property 
rights to us.

The projects in which we invest often require large areas of land 
for construction and operation or other easements or access to the 
underlying land. In addition, we may acquire rights to land or other 
real property. The rights to own or use the land can be obtained 
through fee simple title, leases and other rights of use. Although we 
believe that the real property rights we acquire, or our projects in 
which we invest, have valid rights to all material easements, licenses 
and rights of way, not all of such easements, licenses and rights of 
way are registered against the lands to which they relate and may 
not bind subsequent owners. Some of our real property rights and 
projects generally are, and are likely to continue to be, located on land 
occupied pursuant to long-term easements and leases. The ownership 
interests in the land subject to these easements and leases may be 
subject to mortgages securing loans or other liens (such as tax liens) 
and other easement and lease rights of third parties (such as leases of 
water, oil or mineral rights) that were created prior to, or are superior 
to, our or our projects’ easements and leases. As a result, our rights 
may be subject, and subordinate, to the rights of those third parties. 
We typically obtain representations or perform title searches or obtain 
title insurance to protect our real property interest and our investments 
in our projects against these risks. Such measures may, however, be 
inadequate to protect against all risk of loss of rights to use the land 
rights we have acquired or the land on which these projects are 
located, which could have a material and adverse effect on our land 
rights, our projects and their financial condition and operating results.

We own land or leasehold interests that are used by 
renewable energy projects. Negative market conditions 
or adverse events affecting tenants, or the industries in 
which they operate, could have an adverse impact on our 
underwritten returns. Moreover, many of our assets are 
concentrated in similar geographic locations, which subjects 
us to an increased risk of significant loss if any property 
declines in value, incurs a natural disaster or if we are 
unable to lease a property.

We own land or leasehold interests used by renewable energy projects 
that are concentrated in a limited number of geographic locations. 
One consequence of this is that the aggregate returns we realize may 

be substantially adversely affected by the unfavorable performance 
of a small number of leases, a significant decline in the market value 
of any single property or a natural disaster in a concentrated area. 
Our cash flow depends in part on the ability to lease the real estate to 
projects or other tenants on economically favorable terms. We could 
be adversely affected by various facts and events over which we have 
limited or no control, such as:

zz lack of demand in areas where our properties are located;

zz inability to retain existing tenants and attract new tenants;

zz oversupply of space and changes in market rental rates;

zz our tenants’ creditworthiness and ability to pay rent, which may 
be affected by their operations, the current economic situation and 
competition within their industries from other operators;

zz defaults by and bankruptcies of tenants, failure of tenants to pay 
rent on a timely basis, or failure of tenants to comply with their 
contractual obligations;

zz economic or physical decline of the areas where the properties 

are located; and

zz destruction from natural disasters.

At any time, any tenant may experience a downturn in its business, 
including increased operating costs, termination of a PPA or low spot-
market prices of products, that may weaken its operating results or 
overall financial condition, a tenant may delay lease commencement, 
fail to make rental payments when due, decline to extend a lease 
upon its expiration, become insolvent or declare bankruptcy. Any 
tenant bankruptcy or insolvency, leasing delay or failure to make rental 
payments when due could result in the termination of the tenant’s lease 
and material losses to us.

If a tenant elects to terminate its lease prior to or upon its expiration 
or does not renew its lease as it expires, we may not be able to 
rent or sell the properties or realize our expected value. Furthermore, 
leases that are renewed and some new leases for properties that are 
re-leased, may have terms that are less economically favorable than 
expiring lease terms, or may require us to incur significant costs, such 
as lease transaction costs. In addition, negative market conditions 
or adverse events affecting tenants, or the industries in which they 
operate, may force us to sell vacant properties for less than their 
carrying value, which could result in impairments. Any of these events 
could adversely affect the value of our asset, the cash flow from 
operations and our ability to make distributions to stockholders and 
service indebtedness. A significant portion of the costs of owning 
property, such as real estate taxes, insurance and maintenance, are 
not necessarily reduced when circumstances cause a decrease in 
rental revenue from the properties. In a weakened financial condition, 
tenants may not be able to pay these costs of ownership and we may 
be unable to recover these operating expenses from them.

Further, the occurrence of a tenant bankruptcy or insolvency could 
diminish the income we receive from the tenant’s lease or leases. For 
instance, a bankruptcy court might authorize the tenant to terminate its 
leases with us. If that happens, our claim against the bankrupt tenant 
for unpaid future rent would be subject to statutory limitations that most 
likely would be substantially less than the remaining rent we are owed 
under the leases. In addition, any claim we have for unpaid past rent, 
if any, may not be paid in full. As a result, tenant bankruptcies may 
have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

In addition, since renewable energy projects are often concentrated in 
certain states, we would also be subject to any adverse change in the 
political or regulatory climate in those states or specific counties where 
such properties are located that could adversely affect our properties 
and our ability to lease such properties.

Performance of projects where we invest may be harmed 
by future labor disruptions and economically unfavorable 
collective bargaining agreements.

A number of the projects where we invest could have workforces that 
are unionized or that in the future may become unionized and, as a 
result, are required to negotiate the wages, benefits and other terms 
with many of their employees collectively. If these projects were unable 
to negotiate acceptable contracts with any of their unions as existing 
agreements expire, they could experience a significant disruption of 
their operations, higher ongoing labor costs and restrictions on their 
ability to maximize the efficiency of their operations, which could have 
a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition 
and results of operations. In addition, in some jurisdictions where 
our projects have operations, labor forces have a legal right to strike 
which may have a negative impact on our business, financial condition 
and results of operations, either directly or indirectly, for example if a 
critical upstream or downstream counterparty was itself subject to a 
labor disruption which impacted the ability of our projects to operate.

We invest in projects that rely on third parties to 
manufacture quality products or provide reliable services in 
a timely manner and the failure of these third parties could 
cause project performance to be adversely affected.

We invest in projects that typically rely on third parties to select, 
manage or provide equipment or services. Third parties may be 
responsible for choosing vendors, including equipment suppliers 
and subcontractors. Project success often depends on third parties 
who are capable of installing and managing projects and structuring 
contracts that provide appropriate protection against construction and 
operational risks. In many cases, in addition to contractual protections 
and remedies, project owners may seek guaranties, warranties and 
construction bonding to provide additional protection.

The warranties provided by the third parties and, in some cases, their 
subcontractors, typically limit any direct harm that results from relying on 
their products and services. However, there can be no assurance that a 
supplier or subcontractor will be willing or able to fulfill its contractual 
obligations and make necessary repairs or replace equipment. In 
addition, these warranties generally expire within one to five years 
or may be of limited scope or provide limited remedies. If projects 
are unable to avail themselves of warranty protection or receive the 
expected protection under the terms of the guaranties or bonding, 
we may need to incur additional costs, including replacement and 
installation costs, which could adversely impact our investment.

Liability relating to environmental matters may impact the 
value of properties that we may acquire or the properties 
underlying our assets.

Under various U.S. federal, state and local laws, an owner or operator 
of real estate or a project may become liable for the costs of removal 
of certain hazardous substances released from the project or any 
underlying real property. These laws often impose liability without 
regard to whether the owner or operator knew of, or was responsible 
for, the release of such hazardous substances.

The presence of hazardous substances may adversely affect our, or 
another owner’s, ability to sell a contaminated project or borrow using 
the project as collateral. To the extent that we, or another project 
owner, become liable for removal costs, our investment, or the ability 
of the owner to make payments to us, may be negatively impacted.

We acquire real property rights, make investments in projects that own 
real property, have collateral consisting of real property and in the 
course of our business, we may take title to a project or its underlying 
real estate assets relating to one of our debt financings. In these cases, 
we could be subject to environmental liabilities with respect to these 
assets. To the extent that we become liable for the removal costs, our 
results of operation and financial condition may be adversely affected. 
The presence of hazardous substances, if any, may adversely affect our 
ability to sell the affected real property or the project and we may incur 
substantial remediation costs, thus harming our financial condition.

Our insurance and contractual protections may not always 
cover lost revenue, increased expenses or liquidated 
damages payments.

Although our assets or projects generally have insurance, supplier 
warranties, subcontractors performance assurances such as bonding 
and other risk mitigation measures, the proceeds of such insurance, 
warranties, bonding or other measures may not be adequate to cover 
lost revenue, increased expenses or liquidated damages payments that 
may be required in the future.

The repayment of certain of our assets is dependent upon 
collection of payments from residential customers and we 
may be indirectly subject to consumer protection laws and 
regulations. 

Certain obligors to which we have credit exposure are, or may be, 
subject to consumer protection laws, such as federal truth-in-lending, 
consumer leasing, and equal credit opportunity laws and regulations, 
as well as state and local sales and finance laws and regulations. 
Claims arising out of actual or alleged violations of law may be 
asserted against those obligors by individuals or governmental entities 
and may exposure them to significant damages or other penalties, 
including fines, or could reduce the likelihood the residential customer 
may pay their obligation, which could limit their ability to repay 
borrowings or make equity distributions to us.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Risks related to our company

We may change our operational policies (including our 
investment guidelines, strategies and policies) with the 
approval of our board of directors but without stockholder 
consent at any time, which may adversely affect the 
market value of our common stock and our ability to make 
distributions to our stockholders.

Cybersecurity risks and cyber incidents may adversely affect 
our business by causing a disruption to our operations, a 
compromise or corruption of our confidential information, a 
misappropriation of funds, and/or damage to our business 
relationships, all of which could negatively impact our 
financial results.

Our board of directors determines our operational policies and may 
amend or revise our policies, including our policies with respect 
to acquisitions, dispositions, growth, operations, compensation, 
indebtedness, capitalization and dividends, or approve transactions 
that deviate from these policies, without a vote of, or notice to, our 
stockholders at any time. We may change our investment guidelines, 
underwriting process and our strategy at any time with the approval 
of our board of directors, but without the consent of our stockholders, 
which could result in originating assets that are different in type from, 
and possibly riskier than, the assets initially contemplated. In addition, 
our charter provides that our board of directors may authorize us to 
revoke or otherwise terminate our REIT election, without the approval 
of our stockholders, if it determines that it is no longer in our best 
interests to qualify as a REIT. These changes could adversely affect 
our business, financial condition, results of operations and our ability 
to make distributions to our stockholders.

Our management and employees depend on information 
systems and system failures could significantly disrupt 
our business, which may, in turn, negatively affect the 
market price of our common stock and our ability to make 
distributions to our stockholders.

Our underwriting process and our asset and financial management 
and reporting are dependent on our present and future communications 
and information systems. Any failure or interruption of these systems 
could cause delays or other problems in our originating, financing, 
investing, asset and financial management and reporting activities, 
which could have a material adverse effect on our operating results.

We contract with information technology service providers 
where, in part, we rely upon their systems and controls 
for the quality of the data provided. The inappropriate 
establishment and maintenance of these systems and 
controls could cause information that we use to operate 
our business to be unavailable or inaccurate and could 
negatively impact our financial results.

Our  information  technology  architecture  is  partially  outsourced. 
These systems and processes may be either internet based or through 
traditional outsourced functions and certain of these arrangements are 
new or emerging. When we contract with these service providers we 
attempt to evaluate the quality of their systems and controls before we 
execute the arrangement and may rely on third party reviews and 
audits of these service providers and attempt to implement certain 
processes to ensure the quality of the data received from these service 
providers. Because of the nature and maturity of the technology such 
efforts may be unsuccessful or incomplete and the unavailability of 
these systems or the inaccurate data provided from these service 
providers could negatively impact our financial results.

A cyber incident is considered to be any adverse event that threatens 
the confidentiality, integrity or availability of our information resources. 
These incidents may be an intentional attack or an unintentional event 
and could involve gaining unauthorized access to our information 
systems for purposes of misappropriating assets, stealing confidential 
information, corrupting data or causing operational disruption. The risk 
of a security breach or disruption, particularly through cyber-attacks or 
cyber intrusions, including by computer hackers, nation-state affiliated 
actors, and cyber terrorists, has generally increased as the number, 
intensity and sophistication of attempted attacks and intrusions from 
around the world have increased. The result of these incidents may 
include disrupted operations, misstated or unreliable financial data, 
disrupted market price of our common stock, misappropriation of 
assets, liability for stolen assets or information, increased cybersecurity 
protection and insurance cost, regulatory enforcement, litigation and 
damage to our relationships. These risks require continuous and likely 
increasing attention and other resources from us to, among other 
actions, identify and quantify these risks, upgrade and expand our 
technologies, systems and processes to adequately address them and 
provide periodic training for our employees to assist them in detecting 
phishing, malware and other schemes. Such attention diverts time and 
other resources from other activities and there is no assurance that our 
efforts will be effective. Potential sources for disruption, damage or 
failure of our information technology systems include, without limitation, 
computer viruses, security breaches, human error, cyber- attacks, 
natural disasters and defects in design. Additionally, due to the size 
and nature of our company, we rely on third-party service providers 
for many aspects of our business. We can provide no assurance that 
the networks and systems that our third-party vendors have established 
or use will be effective. As our reliance on technology has increased, 
so have the risks posed to both our information systems and those 
provided by third-party service providers. Our processes, procedures 
and internal controls that are designed to mitigate cybersecurity risks 
and cyber intrusions do not guarantee that a cyber incident will not 
occur or that our financial results, operations or confidential information 
will not be negatively impacted by such an incident. 

We may seek to expand our business internationally, which 
will expose us to additional risks that we do not face in the 
United States, which could have an adverse effect on our 
business, financial condition and operating results.

We generate substantially all of our revenue from operations in the 
United States. We may seek to expand our projects outside of the 
United States in the future. These operations will be subject to a variety 
of risks that we do not face in the United States, including risk from 
changes in foreign country regulations, infrastructure, legal systems and 
markets. Other risks include possible difficulty in repatriating overseas 
earnings and fluctuations in foreign currencies.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Our overall success in international markets will depend, in part, on 
our ability to succeed in different legal, regulatory, economic, social 
and political conditions. We may not be successful in developing and 
implementing policies and strategies that will be effective in managing 
these risks in each country where we decide to do business. Our failure 
to manage these risks successfully could harm our international projects, 
reduce our international income or increase our costs, thus adversely 
affecting our business, financial condition and operating results.

We may seek to expand our business in part through future 
acquisitions or other similar investments.

As  we  grow  our  business,  we  have  used,  and  will  continue  to 
use, acquisitions of, or other types of transactions such as equity 

Risks relating to regulation

We cannot predict the unintended consequences and market 
distortions that may stem from far-ranging governmental 
intervention in the economic and financial system or from 
regulatory reform of the oversight of financial markets.

The U.S. federal government, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, 
the U.S. Treasury, the SEC, U.S. Congress and other governmental 
and regulatory bodies have taken, are taking or may in the future 
take, various actions to address the financial crisis or other areas of 
regulatory concern, such as the Dodd—Frank Wall Street Reform and 
Consumer Protection Act (the “Dodd-Frank Act”). Such actions could 
have a dramatic impact on our business, results of operations and 
financial condition, and the cost of complying with any additional 
laws and regulations or the elimination or reduction in scope of various 
existing laws and regulations could have a material adverse effect 
on our financial condition and results of operations. The far-ranging 
government intervention in the economic and financial system may 
carry unintended consequences and cause market distortions. We are 
unable to predict at this time the extent and nature of such unintended 
consequences and market distortions, if any. The inability to evaluate 
the potential impacts could have a material adverse effect on the 
operations of our business.

Loss of our 1940 Act exemption would adversely affect us, 
the market price of shares of our common stock and our 
ability to distribute dividends.

We conduct our operations so that we are not required to register 
as an investment company under the 1940 Act. Section 3(a)(1)(A) of 
the 1940 Act defines an investment company as any issuer that is or 
holds itself out as being engaged primarily in the business of investing, 
reinvesting or trading in securities. Section 3(a)(1)(C) of the 1940 
Act defines an investment company as any issuer that is engaged or 
proposes to engage in the business of investing, reinvesting, owning, 
holding or trading in securities and owns or proposes to acquire 
investment securities having a value exceeding 40% of the value of the 
issuer’s total assets (exclusive of U.S. Government securities and cash 
items) on a non-consolidated basis, which we refer to as the 40% test. 
Excluded from the term “investment securities,” among other things, are 
U.S. Government securities and securities issued by majority-owned 
subsidiaries that are not themselves investment companies and are not 
relying on the exemption from the definition of investment company set 
forth in Section 3(c)(1) or Section 3(c)(7) of the 1940 Act.

or convertible debt investments in, companies or assets to invest in 
new or different projects or markets, expand our project skill-sets 
and capabilities, expand our geographic markets, add experienced 
management and increase our product and service offerings. There 
are a number of risks associated with these transactions and we may 
not achieve our goals in the transaction. Such transaction could disrupt 
our business, cause dilution to our stockholders and harm our business, 
financial condition or operating results. In addition, the time and effort 
involved to identify candidates and consummate such transactions 
may divert members of our management from the operations of our 
company.

We conduct our businesses primarily through our subsidiaries and 
our operations so that we comply with the 40% test. The securities 
issued by any wholly-owned or majority-owned subsidiaries that we 
hold or may form in the future that are exempted from the definition of 
“investment company” based on Section 3(c)(1) or 3(c)(7) of the 1940 
Act, together with any other investment securities we may own, may 
not have a value in excess of 40% of the value of our total assets on a 
non-consolidated basis. Certain of our subsidiaries rely on or will rely 
on an exemption from registration as an investment company under 
the 1940 Act pursuant to Section 3(c)(5)(C) of the 1940 Act, which 
is available for entities which are not primarily engaged in issuing 
redeemable securities, face-amount certificates of the installment type 
or periodic payment plan certificates and which are primarily engaged 
in the business of purchasing or otherwise acquiring mortgages and 
other liens on and interests in real estate. This exemption generally 
requires that at least 55% of such subsidiaries’ portfolios must be 
comprised of qualifying assets and at least 80% of each of their 
portfolios must be comprised of qualifying assets and real estate-related 
assets under the 1940 Act. Consistent with guidance published by 
the SEC staff, we intend to treat as qualifying assets for this purpose 
loans secured by projects for which the original principal amount of the 
loan did not exceed 100% of the value of the underlying real property 
portion of the collateral when the loan was made. We intend to treat 
as real estate-related assets non-controlling equity interests in joint 
ventures that own projects whose assets are primarily real property. In 
general, with regard to our subsidiaries relying on Section 3(c)(5)(C),  
we rely on other guidance published by the SEC or its staff or on our 
analyses of guidance published with respect to other types of assets 
to determine which assets are qualifying real estate assets and real 
estate-related assets.

In addition, one or more of our subsidiaries qualifies for an exemption 
from registration as an investment company under the 1940 Act 
pursuant  to  either  Section  3(c)(5)(A)  of  the  1940  Act,  which  is 
available for entities which are not engaged in the business of issuing 
redeemable securities, face-amount certificates of the installment 
type or periodic payment plan certificates, and which are primarily 
engaged  in  the  business  of  purchasing  or  otherwise  acquiring 
notes, drafts, acceptances, open accounts receivable, and other 
obligations representing part or all of the sales price of merchandise, 
insurance,  and  services,  or  Section  3(c)(5)(B)  of  the  1940  Act, 
which is available for entities primarily engaged in the business of 
making loans to manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers of, and 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1A. Risk Factors

to prospective purchasers of, specified merchandise, insurance, and 
services. These exemptions generally require that at least 55% of such 
subsidiaries’ portfolios must be comprised of qualifying assets that 
meet the requirements of the exemption. We intend to treat energy 
efficiency loans where the loan proceeds are specifically provided to 
finance equipment, services and structural improvements to properties 
and other facilities and renewable energy and other sustainable 
infrastructure projects or improvements as qualifying assets for purposes 
of these exemptions. In general, we also expect, with regard to our 
subsidiaries relying on Section 3(c)(5)(A) or (B), to rely on guidance 
published by the SEC or its staff, including reliance on a no-action 
letter obtained in connection with Sections 3(c)(5)(A) and 3(c)(5)(B) of 
the 1940 Act, or on our analyses of guidance published with respect 
to other types of assets to determine which assets are qualifying assets 
under the exemptions.

Although we monitor the portfolios of our subsidiaries relying on the 
Section 3(c)(5)(A), (B) or (C) exemptions periodically and prior to each 
acquisition, there can be no assurance that such subsidiaries will be 
able to maintain their exemptions. Qualification for exemptions from 
registration under the 1940 Act will limit our ability to make certain 
investments. For example, these restrictions will limit the ability of these 
subsidiaries to make loans that are not secured by real property or 
that do not represent part or all of the sales price of merchandise, 
insurance, and services.

There can be no assurance that the laws and regulations governing 
the 1940 Act, including the Division of Investment Management of 
the SEC providing more specific or different guidance regarding these 
exemptions, will not change in a manner that adversely affects our 
operations. For example, on August 31, 2011, the SEC issued a 
concept release (No. IC-29778; File No. SW7-34-11, Companies 
Engaged in the Business of Acquiring Mortgages and Mortgage-
Related Instruments) pursuant to which it is reviewing the scope of 
the exemption from registration under Section 3(c)(5)(C) of the 1940 
Act. While the SEC has yet to provide additional information on its 
position relating to these exemptions and timing of any future changes 
to the exemptions remain unknown, any additional guidance from 
the SEC or its staff from this process or in other circumstances could 
provide additional flexibility to us, or it could further inhibit our ability 
to pursue the strategies we have chosen. If we or our subsidiaries 
fail to maintain an exemption from the 1940 Act, we could, among 
other things, be required either to (1) change the manner in which 
we conduct our operations to avoid being required to register as an 
investment company, (2) effect sales of our assets in a manner that, or 
at a time when, we would not otherwise choose to do so or (3) register 
as an investment company, any of which could negatively affect our 
business, our ability to make distributions, our financing strategy and 
the market price for our shares of common stock.

We have not requested the SEC or its staff to approve our treatment of 
any company as a majority-owned subsidiary and neither the SEC nor 
its staff has done so. If the SEC or its staff were to disagree with our 
treatment of one or more companies as majority-owned subsidiaries, 
we would need to adjust our strategy and our assets in order to 
continue to pass the 40% test. Any such adjustment in our strategy 
could have a material adverse effect on us.

Rapid changes in the values of our assets may make it more 
difficult for us to maintain our qualification as a REIT or our 
exemption from the 1940 Act.

If the market value or income potential of our assets changes as a result 
of changes in interest rates, general market conditions, government 
actions or other factors, we may need to adjust the portfolio mix of 
our real estate assets and income or liquidate our non-qualifying assets 
to maintain our REIT qualification or our exemption from the 1940 
Act. If changes in asset values or income occur quickly, this may be 
especially difficult to accomplish. This difficulty may be exacerbated 
by the illiquid nature of the assets we may own. We may have to 
make decisions that we otherwise would not make absent the REIT 
and 1940 Act considerations.

Because we expect to distribute substantially all of our REIT 
taxable income to our stockholders, we will need additional 
capital to finance our growth and such capital may not be 
available on favorable terms or at all.

We will need additional capital to fund our growth. U.S. federal 
income tax law generally requires that a REIT distribute annually at 
least 90% of its REIT taxable income, without regard to the deduction 
for dividends paid and excluding net capital gains, and that it pay 
tax at regular corporate rates to the extent that it annually distributes 
greater than 90% but less than 100% of such REIT taxable income. 
Because we intend to grow our business, this limitation may require 
us to incur additional debt or raise additional equity at a time when it 
may be disadvantageous to do so. We cannot make any assurance 
that debt and equity financing will be available to us on favorable 
terms, or at all, and debt financings may be restricted by the terms of 
any of our outstanding borrowings. If additional funds are not available 
to us, we could be forced to curtail or cease new asset originations 
and acquisitions, which could have a material adverse effect on our 
business and financial condition.

The preparation of our financial statements involves use of 
estimates, judgments and assumptions, and our financial 
statements may be materially affected if our estimates prove 
to be inaccurate.

Financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP require the 
use of estimates, judgments and assumptions that affect the reported 
amounts. Different estimates, judgments and assumptions reasonably 
could be used that would have a material effect on the financial 
statements, and changes in these estimates, judgments and assumptions 
are likely to occur from period to period in the future. Significant areas 
of accounting requiring the application of management’s judgment 
include but are not limited to determining the fair value of our assets.

These estimates, judgments and assumptions are inherently uncertain, 
and, if they prove to be wrong, then we face the risk that charges 
to income will be required. Any charges could significantly harm our 
business, financial condition, results of operations and the price of 
our securities. See Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial 
Condition and Results of Operations—Critical Accounting Policies 
and Use of Estimates for a discussion of the accounting estimates, 
judgments and assumptions that we believe are the most critical to 
an understanding of our business, financial condition and results of 
operations.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Risks related to borrowings

We use financial leverage in executing our business 
strategy, which may adversely affect the returns on our 
assets and may reduce cash available for distribution to 
our stockholders, as well as increase losses when economic 
conditions are unfavorable.

We use debt to finance our assets, including credit facilities, recourse 
and non-recourse debt as well as securitizations and syndications. 
Changes in the financial markets and the economy generally could 
adversely affect one or more of our lenders or potential lenders 
and could cause one or more of our lenders, potential lenders or 
institutional investors to be unwilling or unable to provide us with 
financing or participate in securitizations or could increase the costs of 
that financing or securitization. If we are unable to repay or refinance 
the remaining balance of this debt, or if the terms of any available 
refinancing are not favorable, we may be forced to liquidate assets or 
incur higher costs which may significantly harm our business, financial 
condition, results of operations, and our ability to make distributions, 
which could cause the value of our common stock to decline. The return 
on our assets and cash available for distribution to our stockholders 
may be reduced to the extent that market conditions prevent us from 
leveraging our assets or increase the cost of our financing relative to 
the income that can be derived from the assets acquired. Increases 
in our financing costs will reduce cash available for distributions to 
stockholders. We may not be able to meet our financing obligations 
and, to the extent that we cannot, we risk the loss of some or all of 
our assets to liquidation or sale to satisfy the obligations.

An increase in our borrowing costs relative to the interest 
we receive on our assets may adversely affect our 
profitability and our cash available for distribution to our 
stockholders. Our borrowings may have a shorter duration 
than our assets.

As some of our borrowings will have a remaining balance at maturity, 
we may be required to enter into new borrowings at higher rates or to 
sell certain of our assets to repay the loan. In addition, any increases 
in the federal funds rate announced by the Federal Reserve Board 
of Governors is likely to increase shorter-term interest rates and may 
lower the difference between shorter-term interest rates and longer-term 
interest rates which would result in a flattening or inversion of the yield 
curve. Our credit facilities have rates that adjust on a frequent basis 
based on prevailing short-term interest rates. An increase in interest 
rates, or a flattening or inversion of the yield curve, would reduce the 
spread between the returns on our assets which are typically priced 
using longer-term interest rates and the cost of any new borrowings or 
borrowings where the interest rate adjusts to market rates or is based 
on shorter-term rates. This change in interest rates would adversely 
affect our earnings and, in turn, cash available for distribution to 
our stockholders. In addition, as we may use short-term borrowings 
including repurchase agreements and warehouse facilities that are 
generally short-term commitments of capital, lenders may respond to 
market conditions making it more difficult for us to secure continued 
financing. If we are not able to renew our then existing facilities or 
arrange for new financing on terms acceptable to us, or if we default 
on our covenants or are otherwise unable to access funds under any 
of these facilities, we may have to curtail entering into new transactions 
and/or dispose of assets. We will face these risks given that a number 
of our borrowings have a shorter duration than the assets they finance.

2 6  |   

We do not have a formal policy limiting the amount of debt 
we may incur. Our board of directors may change our 
leverage limits without stockholder approval.

Although we are not restricted by any regulatory requirements to 
maintain our leverage ratio at or below any particular level, the amount 
of leverage we may deploy for particular assets will depend upon the 
availability of particular types of financing and our assessment of the 
credit, liquidity, price volatility and other risks of those assets and the 
credit quality of our financing counterparties. We have established 
leverage limits which are discussed in Item 7, Management’s Discussion 
and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations—
Liquidity and Capital Resources. However, our charter and bylaws 
do not limit the amount or type of indebtedness we can incur, and our 
board of directors has changed, and has the discretion to deviate from 
or change at any time in the future, our leverage policy, which could 
result in an investment portfolio with a different risk profile. We utilize 
non-recourse facilities on certain types of assets that have significantly 
higher leverage. On these facilities, the lenders’ primary recourse is 
to the pledged assets and if the value of the pledged assets is below 
the value of the debt or if we default on a facility, the lender would 
be able to foreclose on all the pledged assets, which would result in 
losses and reduce our assets and the cash available for distributions 
to stockholders. We may apply too much leverage to our assets or 
may employ an inefficient financing strategy to our assets.

The use of securitizations and special purpose entities would 
expose us to additional risks.

We presently hold, and to the extent that we securitize loans in the 
future, we anticipate that we will often hold the most junior certificates 
or the residual value associated with a securitization. We may also 
establish other funds or special purpose entities, where we would hold 
only a partial or subordinate interest or a residual value after taking 
into account our non-recourse debt facilities or a right to participate 
in the profits of such entity once it achieves a predefined threshold. 
As a holder of the residual value or other such interests, we are more 
exposed to losses on the underlying collateral because the interest we 
retain in the securitization vehicle or other entity would be subordinate 
to the more senior notes or interests issued to investors and we would, 
therefore, absorb all of the losses, up to the value of our interests, 
sustained with respect to the underlying assets before the owners of the 
notes or other interests experience any losses. In addition, the inability 
to securitize our portfolio or assets within our portfolio could hurt our 
performance and our ability to grow our business.

We also use various special purpose entities to own and finance 
our assets. These subsidiaries incur various types of debt, which can 
be used to finance one or more of our assets. This debt is typically 
structured as non-recourse debt, which means it is repayable solely from 
the revenue from the investment financed by the debt and is secured by 
the related physical assets, major contracts, cash accounts and in some 
cases, a pledge of our ownership interests in the subsidiaries involved 
in the projects. Although this subsidiary debt is typically non-recourse 
to us, we make certain representations and warranties or enter into 
certain guaranties of our subsidiary’s obligations or covenants to the 
non-recourse debt holder, the breach of which may require us to make 
payments to the lender. We may also from time to time determine to 
provide financial support to the subsidiary in order to maintain rights to 
the project or otherwise avoid the adverse consequences of a default. 

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1A. Risk Factors

In the event a subsidiary defaults on its indebtedness, its creditors may 
foreclose on the collateral securing the indebtedness, which may result 
in us losing our ownership interest in some or all of the subsidiary’s 
assets. The loss of our ownership interest in a subsidiary or some or 
all of a subsidiary’s assets could have a material adverse effect on 
our business, financial condition and operating results.

Our existing credit facilities and debt contain, and any 
future financing facilities may contain, covenants that restrict 
our operations and may inhibit our ability to grow our 
business and increase revenues.

Our existing credit facilities and debt contain, and any future financing 
facilities may contain, various affirmative and negative covenants, 
including maintenance of an interest coverage ratio and limitations 
on the incurrence of liens and indebtedness, investments, fundamental 
organizational changes, dispositions, changes in the nature of business, 
transactions with affiliates, use of proceeds and stock repurchases. In 
addition, the terms of our non-recourse debt include restrictions and 
covenants, including limitations on our ability to transfer or incur liens 
on the assets that secure the debt. For further information see Item 7. 
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and 
Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources.

The covenants and restrictions included in our existing financings 
do, and the covenants and restrictions to be included in any future 
financings may, restrict our ability to, among other things:

zz incur or guarantee additional debt;

zz make certain investments, originations or acquisitions;

zz make distributions on or repurchase or redeem capital stock;

zz engage in mergers or consolidations;

zz reduce liquidity below certain levels;

zz grant liens;

zz have a tangible net worth below a defined threshold;

zz incur operating losses for more than a specified period; and

zz enter into transactions with affiliates.

Our non-recourse debt limits our ability to take action with regard to the 
assets pledged as security for the debt. These restrictions, as well as 
any other covenants contained in any future financings, may interfere 
with our ability to obtain financing, or to engage in other business 
activities, which may significantly limit or harm our business, financial 
condition, liquidity and results of operations. Our financing agreements 
may contain cross-default provisions, so that if a default occurs under 
any one agreement, the lenders under our other agreements could 
also declare a default. A default and resulting repayment acceleration 
could significantly reduce our liquidity, which could require us to 
sell our assets to repay amounts due and outstanding. This could 
also significantly harm our business, financial condition, results of 
operations, and our ability to make distributions, which could cause the 
value of our common stock to decline and adversely affect our ability to 
qualify, or remain qualified, as a REIT. A default will also significantly 
limit our financing alternatives such that we will be unable to pursue 
our leverage strategy, which could curtail the returns on our assets.

In addition, certain of our financing arrangements contain provisions 
that provide for a preference in cash flow allocations to the lender 
from our assets or an acceleration of principal payments owed when 
certain conditions are present related to the underlying assets that serve 
as collateral for the financing. These provisions may limit our ability to 

obtain distributions from the underlying assets and could impact our 
cash flow and expected returns.

We have issued senior unsecured notes which require us to maintain 
a certain amount of unencumbered assets as a part of our portfolio, 
as well as to maintain certain debt coverage service ratios in order to 
issue additional notes. These provisions may limit our ability to leverage 
certain assets and limit our overall debt levels. 

We will have to pay off the remaining balance or refinance 
our borrowings when they become due. The failure to 
be able to pay off the remaining balance or refinance 
such borrowings or an increase in interest rates of such 
refinancing could have a material impact on our business.

Some of our borrowings will have a remaining balance when they 
become due. If our subsidiary is unable to repay or refinance the 
remaining balance of this debt, or if the terms of any available 
refinancing are not favorable, we may be forced to liquidate assets or 
incur higher costs which may significantly harm our business, financial 
condition, results of operations, and our ability to make distributions, 
which could cause the value of our common stock to decline.

If a counterparty to repurchase transactions defaults on its 
obligation to resell the underlying security back to us at the 
end of the transaction term, or if the value of the underlying 
security has declined as of the end of that term, or if we 
default on obligations under the repurchase agreement, we 
may lose money on repurchase transactions.

In repurchase transactions, we will generally sell certain of our assets 
to lenders (i.e., repurchase agreement counterparties) and receive 
cash from the lenders. The lenders will be obligated to resell the same 
assets back to us at the end of the term of the transaction. Because 
the cash we will receive from the lender when we initially sell the 
assets to the lender is less than its value, if the lender defaults on its 
obligation to resell the same asset back to us we would incur a loss 
on the transaction equal to the differential in value at which the lender 
purchased the asset (assuming there was no other change in value). 
We would also lose money on a repurchase transaction if the value 
of the underlying asset has declined as of the end of the transaction 
term, as we would have to repurchase the assets for their initial value 
but would receive loans worth less than that amount. We may also be 
forced to sell assets at significantly depressed prices to meet margin 
calls, post additional collateral and maintain adequate liquidity, 
which could cause us to incur losses. Moreover, to the extent we are 
forced to sell assets at such time, given market conditions, we may be 
selling at the same time as others facing similar pressures, which could 
exacerbate a difficult market environment and which could result in 
our incurring significantly greater losses on our sale of such assets. In 
an extreme case of market duress, a market may not even be present 
for certain of our assets at any price. Such a situation would likely 
result in a rapid deterioration of our financial condition and possibly 
necessitate a filing for protection under the United States Bankruptcy 
Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”). Further, if we default on one of our 
obligations under a repurchase transaction, the lender will be able to 
terminate the transaction and cease entering into any other repurchase 
transactions with us. Our repurchase agreements may contain cross-
default provisions, so that if a default occurs under any one agreement, 
the lenders under any other of our agreements could also declare a 
default. If a default occurs under any of our repurchase agreements 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

and the lenders terminate one or more of our repurchase agreements, 
we may need to enter into replacement repurchase agreements with 
different lenders. There can be no assurance that we will be successful 
in entering into such replacement repurchase agreements on the same 
terms as the repurchase agreements that were terminated or at all. 
Any losses we incur on our repurchase transactions could adversely 
affect our earnings and thus our cash available for distribution to our 
stockholders. In the event of our insolvency or bankruptcy, certain 
repurchase agreements may qualify for special treatment under the 
Bankruptcy Code, the effect of which, among other things, would 
be to allow the lender under the applicable repurchase agreement 
to avoid the automatic stay provisions of the Bankruptcy Code and 
to foreclose on the collateral agreement without delay, which could 
ultimately reduce the amounts we could otherwise recover.

The expected discontinuance of the London interbank 
offered rate (“LIBOR”) and transition to alternative reference 
rates may adversely impact our borrowings and assets. 

In July 2017, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates 
the LIBOR administrator, ICE Benchmark Administration Limited (“IBA”) 
announced that it would cease to compel banks to participate in setting 
LIBOR as a benchmark by the end of 2021. Such announcement 
indicates that market participants cannot rely on LIBOR being published 
after 2021. On December 4, 2020, the IBA published a consultation 
on its intention to cease the publication of LIBOR. For the most commonly 
used tenors (overnight and one, three, six and 12 months) of U.S. dollar 
LIBOR, the IBA is proposing to cease publication immediately after 
June 30, 2023, anticipating continued rate submissions from panel 
banks for these tenors of U.S. dollar LIBOR. The IBA’s consultation also 
proposes to cease publication of all other U.S. dollar LIBOR tenors, 
and of all non-U.S. dollar LIBOR rates, after December 31, 2021. The 
FCA and U.S. bank regulators have welcomed the IBA’s proposal to 
continue publishing certain tenors for U.S. dollar LIBOR through June 30,  
2023  because  it  would  allow  many  legacy  U.S.  dollar  LIBOR 
contracts that lack effective fallback provisions and are difficult to 
amend to mature before such LIBOR rates experience disruptions. 
U.S. bank regulators are, however, encouraging banks to cease 
entering into new financial contracts that use LIBOR as a reference 
rate as soon as practicable and in any event by December 31,  
2021. Given consumer protection, litigation, and reputation risks, U.S. 
bank regulators believe entering into new financial contracts that use 
LIBOR as a reference rate after December 31, 2021 would create 
safety and soundness risks. In addition, they expect new financial 
contracts to either utilize a reference rate other than LIBOR or have 
robust fallback language that includes a clearly defined alternative 
reference rate after LIBOR’s discontinuation. Although the foregoing 
may provide some sense of timing, there is no assurance that LIBOR, 
of any particular currency and tenor, will continue to be published or 
be representative of the underlying market until any particular date, 
and it appears highly likely that LIBOR will be discontinued or modified 
after December 31, 2021 or June 30, 2023, depending on the 
currency and tenor. 

The Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a group of private-market 
participants convened by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board and the 
New York Federal Reserve, has recommended the Secured Overnight 

Financing Rate (“SOFR”) as a more robust reference rate alternative 
to U.S. dollar LIBOR. The use of SOFR as a substitute for U.S. dollar 
LIBOR is voluntary and may not be suitable for all market participants. 
SOFR is calculated based on overnight transactions under repurchase 
agreements, backed by Treasury securities. SOFR is observed and 
backward looking, which stands in contrast with LIBOR under the 
current methodology, which is an estimated forward-looking rate and 
relies, to some degree, on the expert judgment of submitting panel 
members. Given that SOFR is a secured rate backed by government 
securities, it will be a rate that does not take into account bank credit 
risk (as is the case with LIBOR). SOFR is therefore likely to be lower 
than U.S. dollar LIBOR and is less likely to correlate with the funding 
costs of financial institutions. To approximate economic equivalence 
to LIBOR, SOFR can be compounded over a relevant term and a 
spread adjustment may be added. Market practices related to SOFR 
calculation conventions continue to develop and may vary, and 
inconsistent calculation conventions may develop among financial 
products.

The debt drawn from our credit facilities is linked to U.S. dollar LIBOR. 
These facilities mature in July 2023. We expect similar financing 
arrangements, including new debt and interest rate hedge agreements, 
will be in place at the time at which the IBA ceases to publish LIBOR. 
It is not possible to predict all consequences of the IBA’s proposals 
to cease publishing LIBOR, any related regulatory actions and the 
expected discontinuance of the use of LIBOR as a reference rate for 
financial contracts. Some of our LIBOR linked financing arrangements 
may  not  include  robust  fallback  language  that  would  facilitate 
replacing LIBOR with a clearly defined alternative reference rate after 
LIBOR’s discontinuation, and we may need to amend these before 
the IBA ceases to publish LIBOR. If such arrangements mature after 
LIBOR ceases to be published, our counterparties may disagree with 
us about how to calculate or replace LIBOR. Even when robust fallback 
language is included, there can be no assurance that the replacement 
rate plus any spread adjustment will be economically equivalent to 
LIBOR, which could result in a change in our interest rate. Modifications 
to any debt or interest rate hedging transactions or other contracts to 
replace LIBOR with an alternative reference rate could result in adverse 
tax consequences. In addition, any resulting differences in interest rate 
standards among our financing arrangements may result in interest rate 
mismatches between our assets and the borrowings used to fund such 
assets. Furthermore, the transition away from LIBOR may adversely 
impact our ability to manage and hedge exposures to fluctuations in 
interest rates using derivative instruments. There is no guarantee that 
a transition from LIBOR to alternative reference rates will not result in 
financial market disruptions, significant increases in benchmark rates, 
or borrowing costs to borrowers, any of which could have an adverse 
effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition, and 
the market price of our common stock.

We expect LIBOR to be available in substantially its current form until 
the end of 2021. However, if a significant number of panel banks 
decline to provide LIBOR submissions to the IBA, it is possible that 
LIBOR will become unrepresentative of the underlying market and 
subject to increased volatility prior to such date. Should that occur, the 
risks associated with the transition to alternative reference rates will be 
accelerated and magnified.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 1A. Risk Factors

Risks related to hedging

We, or the projects in which we invest, enter into hedging 
transactions that could expose us to contingent liabilities or 
additional credit risk in the future and adversely impact our 
financial condition.

Subject to maintaining our qualification as a REIT, part of our strategy, 
or the strategy of the projects in which we invest, involves entering 
into hedging transactions that could require us to fund cash payments 
in certain circumstances (e.g., the early termination of the hedging 
instrument caused by an event of default or other early termination 
event,  or  the  decision  by  a  counterparty  to  request  margin  it  is 
contractually owed under the terms of the hedging instrument). The 
amount due would be equal to the unrealized loss of the open swap 
positions with the respective counterparty and could also include other 
fees and charges. These economic losses will be reflected in our, or the 
project’s, financial statements, and our, or the project’s, ability to fund 
these obligations will depend on the liquidity of our, or the project’s, 
assets and access to capital at the time, and the need to fund these 
obligations could adversely impact our financial condition.

In addition, over-the-counter hedges entered into to hedge interest 
rates, credit risk or commodity prices involve risk since they often 
are not traded on regulated exchanges or cleared through a central 
counterparty. We would remain exposed to our counterparty’s ability 
to perform on its obligations under each hedge and cannot look to 
the creditworthiness of a central counterparty for performance. As a 
result, if a hedging counterparty cannot perform under the terms of 
the hedge, we would not receive payments due under that hedge, 
we may lose any unrealized gain associated with the hedge and the 
hedged liability would cease to be hedged. While we would seek 
to terminate the relevant hedge transaction and may have a claim 
against the defaulting counterparty for any losses, including unrealized 
gains, there is no assurance that we would be able to recover such 
amounts or to replace the relevant hedge on economically viable terms 
or at all. In such case, we could be forced to cover our unhedged 
liabilities at the then current market price. We may also be at risk for 
any collateral we have pledged to secure our obligations under the 
hedge if the counterparty becomes insolvent or files for bankruptcy.

Furthermore, our interest rate swaps and other hedge transactions are 
subject to increasing statutory and other regulatory requirements and, 
depending on the identity of the counterparty, applicable international 
requirements. Recently, new regulations have been promulgated by 
U.S. and foreign regulators to strengthen the oversight of swaps, and 
any further actions taken by such regulators could constrain our strategy 
or increase our costs, either of which could materially and adversely 
impact our results of operations.

In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act requires certain derivatives, including 
certain interest rate swaps, to be executed on a regulated market 
and cleared through a central counterparty. Unlike over-the-counter 
swaps, the counterparty for the cleared swaps is the clearing house, 
which reduces counterparty risk. However, cleared swaps require 
us to appoint clearing brokers and to post margin in accordance 
with the clearing house’s rules, which has resulted in increased costs 
for cleared swaps compared to over-the-counter swaps. Our over-

the-counter hedges with swap dealers became subject to margin 
regulations promulgated by U.S. regulators on March 1, 2017, 
which regulations increased the required margin, and the cost to us 
of over-the-counter swaps. The margin requirements for both cleared 
and uncleared swaps also limit eligible margin to cash and specified 
types of securities, which may further increase the costs of hedging 
and induce us to change or reduce the use of hedging transactions. 
The margin regulations generally do not apply to any over-the-counter 
swaps that  were entered into prior to the effective date of such 
regulations.

In addition, any mortgage real estate investment trust that trades in 
swaps may be considered a “commodity pool,” which would cause its 
operator to be regulated as a “commodity pool operator” (a “CPO”). 
In December 2012, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission 
(“CFTC”),  issued  a  no-action  letter  giving  relief  to  operators  of 
mortgage REITs from any applicable CPO registration requirement. In 
order for us to qualify for the no-action relief, we must, among other 
non-operation requirements: (1) limit our initial margin and premiums 
for commodity interests (swaps and exchange-traded derivatives 
subject to the jurisdiction of the CFTC) to no more than 5% of the 
fair market value of our total assets; and (2) limit our net income from 
commodity interests that are not “qualifying hedging transactions” to 
less than 5% of its gross income. The need to operate within these 
parameters could limit the use of swaps and other commodity interests 
by us below the level that we would otherwise consider optimal or 
may lead to the registration of our company, our management team 
or our directors as commodity pool operators, which will subject us to 
additional regulatory oversight, compliance and costs.

In addition, the projects in which we invest, may enter into various 
forms of hedging including interest rate and power price hedging. 
To the extent they enter into such hedges, the financial results of the 
project will be exposed to similar risks as described above which 
could adversely impact our results of operations.

If we, or our projects, choose not to pursue, or fail to qualify 
for, hedge accounting treatment, our operating results may 
be impacted because losses on the derivatives that we enter 
into may not be offset by a change in the fair value of the 
related hedged transaction.

We, or our projects, may choose not to pursue, or fail to qualify 
for, hedge accounting treatment relating to derivative and hedging 
transactions. We, or our projects, may fail to qualify for hedge 
accounting treatment for a number of reasons, including if we, or our 
projects, use instruments that do not meet the Accounting Standards 
Codification (“ASC”) Topic 815 definition of a derivative, we, or our 
projects, fail to satisfy ASC Topic 815 hedge documentation and 
hedge effectiveness assessment requirements or the hedge relationship 
is not highly effective. If we, or our projects, fail to qualify for, or 
choose not to pursue, hedge accounting treatment, our, or our projects, 
operating results may be impacted because losses on the derivatives 
that we, or our projects, enter into may not be offset by a change in 
the fair value of the related hedged transaction.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Risks related to our common stock

There can be no assurance that an active trading market 
for our common stock will continue, which could cause our 
common stock to trade at a discount and make it difficult for 
holders of our common stock to sell their shares.

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). 
However, there can be no assurance that an active trading market for 
our common stock will continue, which could cause our common stock 
to trade at a discount to historical prices. Accordingly, no assurance 
can be given as to the ability of our stockholders to sell their common 
stock or the price that our stockholders may obtain for their common 
stock. Some of the factors that could negatively affect the market price 
of our common stock include:

zz our actual or projected operating results, financial condition, cash 
flows and liquidity or changes in business strategy or prospects;

zz changes in the mix of our investment products and services, including 

the level of securitizations or fee income in any quarter;

zz actual or perceived conflicts of interest with individuals, including 

our executives;

zz our ability to arrange financing for projects;

zz equity issuances by us, or share resales by our stockholders, or the 

perception that such issuances or resales may occur;

zz seasonality in construction and demand for our investments;

zz actual or anticipated accounting problems;

zz publication  of  research  reports  about  us  or  the  sustainable 

infrastructure industry;

zz changes in market valuations of similar companies;

zz adverse market reaction to any increased indebtedness we may 

incur in the future;

zz commodity price changes;

zz interest rate changes;

zz additions to or departures of our key personnel;

zz speculation  or  negative  publicity  in  the  press  or  investment 

community;

zz our failure to meet, or the lowering of, our earnings estimates or 

those of any securities analysts;

zz increases in market interest rates, which may lead investors to 
demand a higher distribution yield for our common stock, and would 
result in increased interest expenses on certain of our debt;

zz changes in governmental policies, regulations or laws;

zz failure to qualify, or maintain our qualification, as a REIT or failure to 
maintain our exemption from registration as an investment company 
under the 1940 Act;

zz price and volume fluctuations in the stock market generally; and

zz general market and economic conditions, including the current state 

of the credit and capital markets.

Market factors unrelated to our performance could also negatively 
impact the market price of our common stock. One of the factors that 
investors may consider in deciding whether to buy or sell our common 
stock is our distribution rate as a percentage of our stock price relative 

to market interest rates. If market interest rates increase, prospective 
investors may demand a higher distribution rate or seek alternative 
investments paying higher dividends or interest. As a result, interest 
rate fluctuations and conditions in capital markets can affect the market 
value of our common stock.

Common stock and preferred stock eligible for future sale 
may have adverse effects on our share price.

Subject to applicable law, our board of directors, without stockholder 
approval, may authorize us to issue additional authorized and unissued 
shares of common stock and preferred stock on the terms and for the 
consideration it deems appropriate.

We cannot predict the effect, if any, of future sales of our common 
stock or the availability of shares for future sales, on the market price 
of our common stock. Sales of substantial amounts of common stock 
or the perception that such sales could occur may adversely affect the 
prevailing market price for our common stock.

We cannot assure you of our ability to make distributions in 
the future. If our portfolio of assets fails to generate sufficient 
income and cash flow, we could be required to sell assets, 
borrow funds, raise additional equity or make a portion of 
our distributions in the form of a taxable stock distribution 
or distribution of debt securities.

We are generally required to distribute to our stockholders at least 
90% of our REIT taxable income (without regard to the deduction for 
dividends paid and excluding net capital gains) each year for us to 
qualify, and maintain our qualification, as a REIT under the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Internal Revenue Code”). 
Our current policy is to pay quarterly distributions, which on an annual 
basis is expected to equal or substantially exceed 90% or more of our 
REIT taxable income. In the event that our board of directors authorizes 
distributions in excess of the income or cash flow generated from our 
assets, we may make such distributions from the proceeds of future 
offerings of equity or debt securities or other forms of debt financing 
or the sale of assets.

Our ability to make distributions may be adversely affected by a 
number of factors. Therefore, although we anticipate making quarterly 
distributions to our stockholders, our board of directors has the sole 
discretion to determine the timing, form and amount of any distributions 
to our stockholders. If our portfolio of assets fails to generate sufficient 
income and cash flow, we could be required to sell assets, borrow 
funds, raise additional equity or make a portion of our distributions 
in the form of a taxable stock distribution or distribution of debt 
securities. To the extent that we are required to sell assets in adverse 
market conditions or borrow funds at unfavorable rates, our results of 
operations could be materially and adversely affected. If we raise 
additional equity, our stock price could be materially and adversely 
affected. Our board of directors will make determinations regarding 
distributions based upon various factors, including our earnings, our 
financial condition, our liquidity, our debt covenants, maintenance of 
our REIT qualification, applicable provisions of the MGCL and other 
factors as our board of directors may deem relevant from time to time. 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

We believe that a change in any one of the following factors could 
adversely affect our results of operations and impair our ability to make 
distributions to our stockholders:

zz our ability to make profitable investments;

zz margin calls or other expenses that reduce our cash flow;

zz defaults in our asset portfolio or decreases in the value of our 

portfolio;

zz the cash flow we receive from our assets, including those subject 

to non-recourse debt; and

zz the fact that anticipated operating expense levels may not prove 

accurate, as actual results may vary from estimates.

As a result, no assurance can be given that we will be able to make 
distributions to our stockholders at any time in the future or that the 
level of any distributions we do make to our stockholders will achieve 
a market yield or increase or even be maintained over time, any of 
which could materially and adversely affect us.

In addition, all or a portion of the distributions that we make to our 
stockholders will be taxable as ordinary income, subject to a deduction 
equal to 20% of the amount of such dividends for taxable years 
beginning in 2018 and ending in 2025, which generally reduces the 
effective U.S. federal income tax rate applicable to such dividends. 
However, a portion of our distributions may be designated by us as 
long-term capital gains to the extent that they are attributable to capital 

Risks related to our organization and structure

Our business could be harmed if key personnel terminate 
their employment with us.

Our success depends, to a significant extent, on the continued services 
of our senior management team. We have entered into employment 
agreements with certain members of our senior management team. 
Notwithstanding these agreements, there can be no assurance that any 
or all members of our senior management team will remain employed 
by us. We do not maintain key person life insurance on any of our 
officers other than two policies we maintain for Mr. Eckel under which 
we are a beneficiary in the amount of approximately $500 thousand. 
The loss of services of one or more members of our senior management 
team could harm our business and our prospects.

Conflicts of interest could arise as a result of our structure.

Conflicts  of  interest  could  arise  in  the  future  as  a  result  of  the 
relationships between us and our affiliates, on the one hand, and 
our Operating Partnership or any partner thereof, on the other. Our 
directors and officers have duties to our company under applicable 
Maryland law in connection with our management. Our duties, as the 
general partner, to our Operating Partnership and our partners may 
come into conflict with the duties of our directors and officers to us.

Under  Delaware  law,  a  general  partner  of  a  Delaware  limited 
partnership owes its limited partners the duties of good faith and fair 
dealing. Other duties, including fiduciary duties, may be modified 
or eliminated in the partnership’s partnership agreement, except that 
conflict of interest transactions may still run afoul of implied contractual 
standards under Delaware law. The partnership agreement of our 
Operating  Partnership  provides  that,  for  so  long  as  we  own  a 
controlling interest in our Operating Partnership, any conflict that 

gain income recognized by us or may constitute a return of capital 
to the extent that they exceed our earnings and profits as determined 
for tax purposes. A return of capital is not taxable income but has the 
effect of reducing the basis of a stockholder’s investment in shares of 
our common stock.

Future offerings of debt or equity securities, which may 
rank senior to our common stock, may adversely affect the 
market price of our common stock.

Our present debt ranks, and any future debt would rank, senior to 
our common stock. Such debt is, and likely will be, governed by a 
loan agreement, an indenture or other instrument containing covenants 
restricting  our  operating  flexibility.  Additionally,  our  convertible 
securities, and any equity securities or convertible or exchangeable 
securities that we issue in the future may have rights, preferences and 
privileges more favorable than those of our common stock and may 
result in dilution to owners of our common stock. We and, indirectly, 
our stockholders will bear the cost of issuing and servicing such debt 
or securities. Because our decision to issue debt or equity securities in 
any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors 
beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing 
or nature of our future offerings. Thus, holders of our common stock 
will bear the risk of our future offerings reducing the market price of 
our common stock and diluting the value of their stock holdings in us.

cannot be resolved in a manner not adverse to either our stockholders 
or the limited partners will be resolved in favor of our stockholders. 
We have not obtained an opinion of counsel covering the provisions 
set forth in the partnership agreement of our Operating Partnership 
that purport to waive or restrict our fiduciary duties that would be in 
effect under common law were it not for the partnership agreement of 
our Operating Partnership.

Additionally, the partnership agreement of our Operating Partnership 
expressly limits our liability by providing that neither we, as the general 
partner of the Operating Partnership, nor any of our directors or 
officers, will be liable or accountable in damages to our Operating 
Partnership, its limited partners or their assignees for errors in judgment, 
mistakes of fact or law or for any act or omission if the general partner, 
director or officer, acted in good faith. In addition, our Operating 
Partnership is required to indemnify us, our affiliates and each of 
our and their respective officers, directors, employees and agents 
to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law against any and all 
losses, claims, damages, liabilities (whether joint or several), expenses 
(including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees and other legal fees and 
expenses), judgments, fines, settlements and other amounts arising 
from any and all claims, demands, actions, suits or proceedings, civil, 
criminal, administrative or investigative, that relate to the operations of 
the Operating Partnership, provided that our Operating Partnership will 
not indemnify any such person for (1) willful misconduct or a knowing 
violation of the law, (2) any transaction for which such person received 
an improper personal benefit in violation or breach of any provision 
of the partnership agreement of our Operating Partnership, or (3) in 
the case of a criminal proceeding, the person had reasonable cause 
to believe the act or omission was unlawful.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Certain provisions of Maryland law could inhibit changes in 
control.

Certain provisions of the MGCL may have the effect of deterring a third 
party from making a proposal to acquire us or of impeding a change 
in control under circumstances that otherwise could provide the holders 
of our common stock with the opportunity to realize a premium over 
the then-prevailing market price of our common stock. We are subject 
to the “business combination” provisions of the MGCL that, subject 
to limitations, prohibit certain business combinations between us and 
an “interested stockholder” (defined generally as any person who 
beneficially owns 10% or more of our then outstanding voting stock or 
an affiliate or associate of ours who, at any time within the two-year 
period prior to the date in question, was the beneficial owner of 10% 
or more of our then outstanding voting stock) or an affiliate thereof for 
five years after the most recent date on which the stockholder becomes 
an interested stockholder and, thereafter, impose fair price and/or 
supermajority stockholder voting requirements on these combinations. 

The “control share” provisions of the MGCL provide that, subject 
to certain exemptions, a holder of “control shares” of a Maryland 
corporation (defined as shares which, when aggregated with all 
other shares controlled by the stockholder (except solely by virtue of 
a revocable proxy), entitle the stockholder to exercise one of three 
increasing ranges of voting power in electing directors) acquired in a 
“control share acquisition” (defined as the direct or indirect acquisition 
of ownership or control of issued and outstanding “control shares”) 
has no voting rights with respect to such shares except to the extent 
approved by our stockholders by the affirmative vote of at least two 
thirds of all the votes entitled to be cast on the matter, excluding votes 
entitled to be cast by the acquirer of control shares, our officers and 
our directors who are also our employees. 

The “unsolicited takeover” provisions of Title 3, Subtitle 8 of the 
MGCL permit our board of directors, without stockholder approval 
and regardless of what is currently provided in our charter or bylaws, 
to implement certain takeover defenses, some of which (for example, 
a classified board) we do not yet have.

As permitted by the MGCL, our board of directors has by resolution 
exempted from the “business combination” provision of the MGC 
business combinations (1) between us and any other person, provided, 
that such business combination is first approved by our board of 
directors (including a majority of our directors who are not affiliates 
or associates of such person), (2) the Predecessor and its affiliates 
and associates as part of our formation transactions and (3) persons 
acting in concert with any of the foregoing. Our bylaws contain a 
provision exempting from the control share acquisition statute any and 
all acquisitions by any person of shares of our stock. There can be 
no assurance that our board of directors will not amend or revoke the 
exemption at any time.

Our authorized but unissued shares of common and 
preferred stock may prevent a change in our control.

Our charter permits our board of directors to authorize us to issue 
additional shares of our authorized but unissued common or preferred 
stock. In addition, our board of directors may, without common 
stockholder approval, amend our charter to increase the aggregate 
number of our shares of stock or the number of shares of stock of 
any class or series that we have the authority to issue and classify or 
reclassify any unissued shares of common or preferred stock and set 
the terms of the classified or reclassified shares. As a result, our board 

of directors may establish a series of common or preferred stock that 
could delay or prevent a transaction or a change in control that might 
involve a premium price for shares of our common stock or otherwise 
be in the best interest of our stockholders.

Our rights and the rights of our stockholders to take action 
against our directors and officers are limited, which could 
limit stockholder recourse in the event of actions not in our 
stockholders’ best interests.

Our charter eliminates the liability of our present and former directors 
and officers to us and our stockholders for money damages to the 
maximum extent permitted under Maryland law. 

Our  charter  authorizes  us,  and  our  bylaws  and  indemnification 
agreements entered into with each of our directors and executive 
officers require us, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law, 
to indemnify and, without requiring a preliminary determination of their 
ultimate entitlement to indemnification, to pay or reimburse defense 
costs and other expenses of each of our directors and officers in the 
defense of any proceeding to which he or she is made, or threatened 
to be made, a party or witness by reason of his or her service to us.

Our charter contains provisions that make removal of 
our directors difficult, which could make it difficult for our 
stockholders to effect changes to our management.

Our charter provides that, subject to the rights of holders of any series 
of preferred stock, a director may be removed with or without cause 
upon the affirmative vote of holders of at least two thirds of the votes 
entitled to be cast generally in the election of directors. Vacancies 
may be filled only by a majority of the remaining directors in office, 
even if less than a quorum. These requirements make it more difficult 
to change our management by removing and replacing directors and 
may prevent a change in control of our company that is in the best 
interests of our stockholders.

Ownership limitations may restrict change of control 
or business combination opportunities in which our 
stockholders might receive a premium for their shares.

In order for us to qualify as a REIT for each taxable year after 2013, 
no more than 50% in value of our outstanding capital stock may be 
owned, directly or constructively, by five or fewer individuals during 
the last half of any calendar year, and at least 100 persons must 
beneficially own our stock during at least 335 days of a taxable 
year of 12 months, or during a proportionate portion of a shorter 
taxable year. “Individuals” for this purpose include natural persons, 
private foundations, some employee benefit plans and trusts, and some 
charitable trusts. To assist us in preserving our REIT qualification, among 
other purposes, our charter generally prohibits any person from directly 
or indirectly owning more than 9.8% in value or in number of shares, 
whichever is more restrictive, of the aggregate outstanding shares of 
our capital stock, the outstanding shares of any class or series of our 
preferred stock or the outstanding shares of our common stock. These 
ownership limits could have the effect of discouraging a takeover or 
other transaction in which holders of our common stock might receive 
a premium for their shares over the then prevailing market price or 
which holders might believe to be otherwise in their best interests. Our 
board of directors has established exemptions from these ownership 
limits that permit certain institutional investors and their clients to hold 
shares of our common stock in excess of these ownership limits.

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

Risks related to our taxation as a REIT

Qualifying as a REIT involves highly technical and complex 
provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, and our failure to 
qualify or remain qualified as a REIT would subject us to 
U.S. federal income tax and applicable state and local tax, 
which would negatively impact the results of our operations 
and reduce the amount of cash available for distribution to 
our stockholders.

We elected and qualified as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax 
purposes commencing with our taxable year ended December 31, 
2013. The U.S. federal income tax laws governing REITs are complex, 
and judicial and administrative interpretations of the U.S. federal 
income tax laws governing REIT qualification are limited. To qualify 
as a REIT and remain so qualified, we must meet, on an ongoing basis 
through actual operating results, various tests regarding the nature 
and diversification of our assets and our income, the ownership of 
our outstanding shares, and the amount of our distributions. Even 
a  technical  or  inadvertent  violation  could  jeopardize  our  REIT 
qualification. Our ability to satisfy the asset tests depends upon our 
analysis of the characterization and fair market values of our assets, 
some of which are not susceptible to a precise determination, and for 
which we will not obtain independent appraisals.

We received a private letter ruling from the Internal Revenue Service 
(“IRS”), which we refer to as the Ruling, relating to our ability to treat 
certain of our assets as qualifying REIT assets. We are entitled to 
rely on this Ruling for those assets which fit within the scope of the 
Ruling only to the extent that we have the legal and contractual rights 
described therein, we continue to operate in accordance with the 
relevant facts described in the ruling request we submitted, that such 
facts were accurately presented and to the extent such ruling is not 
inconsistent with the Real Property Regulations (as discussed in more 
detail below). As a result, no assurance can be given that we will 
always be able to rely on this Ruling.

In August of 2016, the Treasury Department and the IRS published 
regulations which we refer to as the Real Property Regulations relating 
to the definition of “real property” for purposes of the REIT income 
and asset tests which apply to us with respect to our taxable years 
beginning after December 31, 2016. Among other things, the Real 
Property Regulations provide that an obligation secured by a structural 
component of a building or other inherently permanent structure qualifies 
as a real estate asset for REIT qualification purposes only if such 
obligation is also secured by a real property interest in the inherently 
permanent structure served by such structural component. This aspect 
of the Real Property Regulations has important implications for our 
qualification as a REIT since a significant portion of our REIT qualifying 
assets consists of receivables that are secured by liens on installed 
structural improvements designed to improve the energy efficiency of 
buildings and a significant portion of our REIT qualifying gross income 
is interest income earned with respect to such receivables.

The  structural  improvements  securing  our  receivables  generally 
qualify as “fixtures” under local real property law, as well as under 
the Uniform Commercial Code, or the UCC, which governs rights 
and obligations of parties in secured transactions. Although not 
controlling for REIT purposes, the general rule in the United States is 
that once improvements are permanently installed in real properties, 
such improvements become fixtures and thus take on the character of 
and are considered to be real property for certain state and local law 

purposes. In general, in the United States, laws governing fixtures, 
including the UCC and real property law, afford lenders who have 
secured their financings with security interests in fixtures with rights 
that extend not just to the fixtures that secure their financings, but 
also to the real properties in which such fixtures have been installed. 
By way of example only, Section 9-604(b) of the UCC, which has 
been adopted in all but two states in the United States, permits a 
lender secured by fixtures, upon a default, to enforce its rights under 
the UCC or under applicable real property laws. Although there is 
limited authority directly on point, given the nature of, and the extent 
to which, the structural improvements securing our receivables are 
integrated into and serve the related buildings, we believe that the 
better view is that the nature and scope of our rights in such buildings 
that inure to us as a result of our receivables are sufficient to satisfy 
the requirements of the Real Property Regulations described above. In 
addition to the limited authority directly on point, two other important 
caveats apply in this regard. First, the Real Property Regulations do 
not define what is required for an obligation secured by a lien on a 
structural component to also be secured by a real property interest 
in the building served by such structural component. However, the 
initial proposed version of the Real Property Regulations, which never 
became effective, included a requirement that the interest in the real 
property held by a REIT be “equivalent” to the interest in a structural 
component held by the REIT in order for the structural component to 
be treated as a real estate asset. This requirement was ultimately not 
included in the final Real Property Regulations, in part in response 
to comments that such requirement may negatively affect investment 
in energy efficiency and renewable energy assets. We believe the 
deletion of this requirement implies that under the final Real Property 
Regulations, our rights in the building need not be equivalent to our 
rights in the structural components serving the building. Second, real 
property law is typically relegated to the states and the specific rights 
available to any lien or mortgage holder, including our rights as a 
fixture lien holder described above, may vary between jurisdictions as 
a result of a range of factors, including the specific local real property 
law requirements and judicial and regulatory interpretations of such 
laws, and the competing rights of mortgage and other lenders. We 
have applied the analysis described above in a number of states 
that have adopted Section 9-604(b) of the UCC. In addition, in 
states where Section 9-604(b) of the UCC has not been adopted, 
we apply the analysis described above based on the application of 
the local real property laws of that state to the extent that we have 
received advice from counsel in those jurisdictions that local real 
property law provides us with appropriate rights to the buildings in 
which the structural improvements securing our receivables have been 
installed. Furthermore, we have applied the analysis described above 
to certain receivables secured by liens on structural improvements 
installed in buildings located in certain U.S. installations outside of the 
United States, based on our view that such installations are subject to 
U.S. sovereignty and as a result the UCC applies in such installations. 
While a number of cases have addressed the rights of fixture lien 
holders generally, there are limited judicial interpretations in only a 
few jurisdictions that directly address the rights and remedies available 
to a fixture lien holder in the real property in which the fixtures have 
been installed. Such rights have been addressed in some cases which 
support our position and, in factual circumstances distinguishable from 
our own, in some cases where the courts have found these rights to 
be more limited. The resolution of these issues in many jurisdictions 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

therefore remains uncertain. As a result of the foregoing, no assurance 
can be given that the IRS will not challenge our position that our 
receivables meet the requirements of the Real Property Regulations or 
that, if challenged, such position would be sustained.

The preamble to the Real Property Regulations provides that, to the 
extent a private letter ruling issued prior to the issuance of the Real 
Property Regulations is inconsistent with the Real Property Regulations, 
the private letter ruling is revoked prospectively from the applicability 
date of the Real Property Regulations. We do not believe that the 
Ruling is inconsistent with the Real Property Regulations because we 
believe the analysis in the Ruling was based on similar principles as 
the relevant portions of the Real Property Regulations, and accordingly 
we do not believe that the Real Property Regulations impact our ability 
to rely on the Ruling. However, no assurance can be given that the 
IRS would not successfully assert that we are not permitted to rely on 
the Ruling because the Ruling has been revoked by the Real Property 
Regulations.

If the IRS were to assert that a significant portion of our receivables do 
not qualify as real estate assets and do not generate income treated 
as interest income from mortgages on real property, we would fail 
to satisfy both the gross income requirements and asset requirements 
applicable to REITs. If this were to occur, we would be required to 
restructure the manner in which we receive such income and we may 
realize significant income that does not qualify for the REIT 75% gross 
income test, which could cause us to fail to qualify as a REIT.

In addition, our compliance with the REIT income and quarterly asset 
requirements also depends upon our ability to successfully manage 
the composition of our income and assets on an ongoing basis in 
accordance with existing REIT regulations and rules and interpretations 
thereof. Moreover, the IRS, new legislation, court decisions or other 
administrative  guidance,  in  each  case  possibly  with  retroactive 
effect, may make it more difficult or impossible for us to qualify as a 
REIT. Our ability to satisfy the requirements to qualify as a REIT also 
depends in part on the actions of third parties over which we have 
no control or only limited influence, including in cases where we own 
an equity interest in an entity that is classified as a partnership for 
U.S. federal income tax purposes. Thus, given the highly complex 
nature  of  the  rules  governing  REITs,  the  ongoing  importance  of 
factual determinations, and the possibility of future changes in our 
circumstances, no assurance can be given that we will so qualify for 
any particular year.

If we fail to qualify as a REIT in any taxable year, and we do not qualify 
for certain statutory relief provisions, we would be required to pay 
U.S. federal income tax on our net taxable income, and distributions 
to our stockholders would not be deductible by us in determining our 
taxable income. In such a case, we might need to borrow money 
or sell assets in order to pay our taxes. Our payment of income tax 
would negatively impact the results of our operations and decrease 
the amount of our income available for distribution to our stockholders. 
Furthermore, if we fail to maintain our qualification as a REIT, we no 
longer would be required to distribute substantially all of our taxable 
income to our stockholders, which would leave our board of directors 
with more discretion over our future distribution levels. In addition, 
unless we were eligible for certain statutory relief provisions, we could 
not re-elect to qualify as a REIT for the subsequent four taxable years 
following the year in which we failed to qualify.

Complying with REIT requirements may force us to liquidate 
or forego otherwise attractive investments.

To qualify as a REIT, we must ensure that we meet the REIT gross 
income tests annually and that, at the end of each calendar quarter, 
at least 75% of the value of our total assets consists of cash, cash 
items, government securities, shares in REITs and other qualifying real 
estate assets. The remainder of our investment in securities (other than 
government securities and REIT qualified real estate assets) generally 
cannot include more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of 
any one issuer or more than 10% of the total value of the outstanding 
securities of any one issuer. In addition, in general, no more than 
5% of the value of our total assets (other than government securities, 
securities of a taxable REIT subsidiary (a “TRS”) and securities that 
are qualifying real estate assets) can consist of the securities of any 
one issuer, no more than 20% of the value of our total assets can 
be represented by securities of one or more TRSs, and no more 
than 25% of the value of our assets can consist of debt instruments 
issued by publicly offered REITs that are not otherwise secured by real 
property. If we fail to comply with these requirements at the end of 
any calendar quarter, we must correct the failure within 30 days after 
the end of the calendar quarter or qualify for certain statutory relief 
provisions to avoid losing our REIT qualification and suffering adverse 
tax consequences. As a result, we may be required to liquidate from 
our portfolio, or contribute to a TRS, otherwise attractive investments, 
and may be unable to pursue investments that would be otherwise 
advantageous to us in order to satisfy the source of income or asset 
diversification requirements for qualifying as a REIT. These actions 
could have the effect of reducing our income and amounts available 
for distribution to our stockholders.

REIT distribution requirements could adversely affect our 
ability to execute our business plan and may require us to 
incur debt or sell assets to make such distributions.

In order to qualify as a REIT, we must distribute to our stockholders, 
each calendar year, at least 90% of our REIT taxable income (including 
certain items of non-cash income), determined without regard to the 
deduction for dividends paid and excluding net capital gain. To the 
extent that we satisfy the 90% distribution requirement, but distribute 
less than 100% of our REIT taxable income, we will be subject to U.S. 
federal corporate income tax on our undistributed income. In addition, 
we will incur a 4% non-deductible excise tax on the amount, if any, by 
which our distributions in any calendar year are less than a minimum 
amount specified under U.S. federal income tax laws. We intend to 
distribute our taxable income to our stockholders in a manner intended 
to satisfy the REIT 90% distribution requirement and to avoid the 4% 
non-deductible excise tax.

In addition, differences in timing between the recognition of taxable 
income, our GAAP income and the actual receipt of cash may occur. 
For example, we may be required to accrue interest and discount 
income on debt securities or interests in debt securities before we 
receive any payments of interest or principal on such assets, and there 
may be timing differences in the accrual of such interest and discount 
income for tax purposes and for GAAP purposes.

As a result of the foregoing, we may generate less cash flow than 
taxable income in a particular year and find it difficult or impossible to 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

meet the REIT distribution requirements in certain circumstances. In such 
circumstances, we may be required to: (i) sell assets in adverse market 
conditions, (ii) raise debt or equity on unfavorable terms, (iii) distribute 
amounts that would otherwise be invested in future acquisitions, capital 
expenditures or repayment of debt, (iv) make a taxable distribution of 
our shares as part of a distribution in which stockholders may elect to 
receive shares or (subject to a limit measured as a percentage of the 
total distribution) cash or (v) use cash reserves, in order to comply with 
the REIT distribution requirements and to avoid U.S. federal corporate 
income tax and the 4% non-deductible excise tax. Thus, compliance 
with the REIT distribution requirements may hinder our ability to grow, 
which could adversely affect the value of our common stock.

Even though we qualify as a REIT, we may face tax liabilities 
that reduce our cash flow.

Even though we qualify for taxation as a REIT, we may be subject to 
certain U.S. federal, state and local taxes on our income and assets, 
including taxes on any undistributed income, tax on income from some 
activities conducted as a result of a foreclosure, and state or local 
income, franchise, property and transfer taxes, including mortgage 
recording taxes. In addition, any TRSs we own will be subject to U.S. 
federal, state and local corporate income or franchise taxes. In order 
to meet the REIT qualification requirements, or to avoid the imposition 
of a 100% tax that applies to certain gains derived by a REIT from 
sales of inventory or property held primarily for sale to customers in the 
ordinary course of business, we may hold some of our assets through 
TRSs. Any taxes paid by such TRSs would decrease the cash available 
for distribution to our stockholders.

The failure of assets subject to a repurchase agreement to 
be considered owned by us or mezzanine loans or other 
assets to qualify as real estate assets may adversely affect 
our ability to qualify as a REIT.

We may enter into repurchase agreements under which we will 
nominally sell certain of our assets to a counterparty and simultaneously 
enter into an agreement to repurchase the sold assets. We believe that 
we will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as the owner 
of the assets that are the subject of any such agreements and that the 
repurchase agreements will be treated as secured lending transactions 
notwithstanding that such agreements may transfer record ownership 
of the assets to the counterparty during the term of the agreement. It is 
possible, however, that the IRS could assert that we did not own the 
assets during the term of the repurchase agreement, in which case 
our REIT asset test could be adversely affected.

In addition, we may acquire mezzanine loans, which are loans 
secured by equity interests in a partnership or limited liability company 
that directly or indirectly owns real property. In IRS Revenue Procedure 
2003-65,  the  IRS  provided  a  safe  harbor  pursuant  to  which  a 
mezzanine loan, if it meets each of the requirements contained in 
the Revenue Procedure, will be treated by the IRS as a real estate 
asset for purposes of the REIT asset tests, and interest derived from 
the mezzanine loan will be treated as qualifying mortgage interest 
for purposes of the REIT 75% gross income test. Although IRS Revenue 
Procedure 2003-65 provides a safe harbor on which taxpayers may 
rely, it does not prescribe rules of substantive tax law. We may acquire 
mezzanine loans that may not meet all of the requirements for reliance 
on this safe harbor. In the event we own a mezzanine loan that 
does not meet the safe harbor, the IRS could challenge such loan’s 
treatment as a real estate asset for purposes of the REIT asset and 

income tests, and if such a challenge were sustained, we could fail 
to qualify as a REIT. Further, we invest in assets such as C-PACE bonds 
and assessments, which we believe are secured by real property 
for purposes of the REIT income and asset tests but with respect to 
which no authority is directly on point. If the IRS were to successfully 
assert that such C-PACE assets are not qualifying assets for purposes 
of the REIT gross asset tests or do not generate qualifying income for 
purposes of the 75% gross income test, our REIT qualification could 
be adversely affected.

We may be required to report taxable income for certain 
investments in excess of the economic income we ultimately 
realize from them.

To the extent we acquire debt investments in the secondary market for 
less than their face amount, the amount of such discount will generally 
be treated as “market discount” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. 
Market discount is generally accrued on the basis of a constant yield 
to maturity of a debt investment. Accrued market discount is reported 
as income when, and to the extent that, any payment of principal of 
the debt instrument is made, unless we elect to include accrued market 
discount in income as it accrues. Principal payments on certain loans 
are made monthly, and consequently accrued market discount may 
have to be included in income each month as if the debt investment 
was assured of ultimately being collected in full. If we collect less on 
the debt investment than our purchase price plus the market discount 
we had previously reported as income, we may not be able to benefit 
from any offsetting loss deductions.

Similarly, some of the debt investments that we acquire may have 
been issued with an original issue discount. We will generally be 
required to report such original issue discount based on a constant 
yield method and will be taxed based on the assumption that all 
future projected payments due on such debt investments will be 
made. If such debt investments turn out not to be fully collectible, 
an offsetting loss deduction will become available only in the later 
year that uncollectability is provable. In addition, in the event that 
any debt investments acquired by us are delinquent as to mandatory 
principal and interest payments, or in the event payments with respect 
to a particular debt investment are not made when due, we may 
nonetheless be required to continue to recognize the unpaid interest 
as taxable income as it accrues, despite doubt as to its ultimate 
collectability. While we would in general ultimately have an offsetting 
loss deduction available to us when such interest was determined to be 
uncollectible, the utility of that deduction could depend on our having 
taxable income in that later year or thereafter. Although we do not 
presently intend to, we may, in the future, acquire debt investments 
that are subsequently modified by agreement with the borrower. If 
such amendments are “significant modifications” under the applicable 
Treasury Regulations, we may be required to recognize taxable income 
as a result of such amendments. Finally, we may be required under 
the terms of indebtedness that we incur with private lenders to use 
cash received from interest payments to make principal payments 
on that indebtedness, with the effect of recognizing income but not 
having a corresponding amount of cash available for distribution to 
our stockholders.

Public law no. 115-97, signed into law on December 22, 2017 
and commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 
(“TCJA”) implements various changes to the U.S. federal income tax 
laws that impacts the taxation of us and our shareholders. Among 
these changes, the TCJA may accelerate our accrual for U.S. federal 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

income tax purposes of certain items of income to the extent that we 
would otherwise recognize such items of income for U.S. federal 
income tax purposes later than we would report such items on our 
financial statements. This provision of the TCJA could increase our 
taxable income in certain taxable years, which could impact our ability 
to satisfy the REIT distribution requirements. 

The  interest  apportionment  rules  under  Treasury  Regulation 
Section 1.856-5(c) provide that, if a loan is secured by both real 
property and other property, a REIT is required to apportion its annual 
interest income to the real property securing the loan based on a 
fraction, the numerator of which is the value of such real property, 
determined when the REIT commits to acquire the loan, and the 
denominator of which is the highest “principal amount” of the loan 
during the year. If a mortgage loan is secured by both real property 
and personal property and the value of the personal property does 
not exceed 15% of the aggregate value of the property securing the 
mortgage loan, the mortgage loan is treated as secured solely by real 
property for this purpose. IRS Revenue Procedure 2014-51 interprets 
the “principal amount” of the loan to be the face amount of the loan, 
despite the Internal Revenue Code requiring taxpayers to treat any 
market discount, that is the difference between the purchase price 
of the loan and its face amount, for all purposes (other than certain 
withholding and information reporting purposes) as interest rather than 
principal. The interest apportionment regulations apply only if the loan 
in question is secured by both real property and other property and 
the value of personal property securing the mortgage exceeds 15% of 
the aggregate value of the property securing the mortgage.

If the IRS were to assert successfully that our loans were secured by 
property other than real estate, the interest apportionment rules applied 
for purposes of our REIT testing, and that the position taken in IRS 
Revenue Procedure 2014-51 should be applied to certain loans in our 
portfolio, then depending upon the value of the real property securing 
our loans and their face amount, and the sources of our gross income 
generally, we may fail to meet the 75% REIT gross income test. If we 
do not meet this test, we could potentially lose our REIT qualification 
or be required to pay a penalty to the IRS.

The “taxable mortgage pool” rules may increase the taxes 
that we or our stockholders may incur and may limit the 
way we effect future securitizations.

Securitizations by us or our subsidiaries could result in the creation of 
taxable mortgage pools for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As a 
result, we could have “excess inclusion income.” Certain categories of 
stockholders, such as non-U.S. stockholders eligible for treaty or other 
benefits, U.S. stockholders with net operating losses, and certain U.S. 
tax-exempt stockholders that are subject to unrelated business income 
tax, could be subject to increased taxes on a portion of their dividend 
income from us that is attributable to any such excess inclusion income. 
In the case of a stockholder that is a REIT, a regulated investment 
company (a “RIC”), common trust fund or other pass-through entity, our 
allocable share of our excess inclusion income could be considered 
excess inclusion income of such entity. In addition, to the extent 
that our common stock is owned by U.S. tax-exempt “disqualified 
organizations,”  such  as  certain  government-related  entities  and 
charitable remainder trusts that are not subject to tax on unrelated 
business income, we may incur a corporate level tax on a portion 
of any excess inclusion income. Because this tax generally would be 
imposed on us, all of our stockholders, including stockholders that 

are not disqualified organizations, generally will bear a portion of 
the tax cost associated with the classification of us or a portion of our 
assets as a taxable mortgage pool. A RIC, or other pass-through entity 
owning our common stock in record name will be subject to tax at the 
highest U.S. federal corporate income tax rate on any excess inclusion 
income allocated to their owners that are disqualified organizations. 
Moreover, we could face limitations in selling equity interests in these 
securitizations to outside investors, or selling any debt securities issued 
in connection with these securitizations that might be considered to be 
equity interests for tax purposes. Finally, if we were to fail to qualify as 
a REIT, any taxable mortgage pool securitizations would be treated as 
separate taxable corporations for U.S. federal income tax purposes 
that could not be included in any consolidated U.S. federal corporate 
income tax return. These limitations may prevent us from using certain 
techniques to maximize our returns from securitization transactions.

Although our use of TRSs may be able to partially mitigate 
the impact of meeting the requirements necessary to 
maintain our qualification as a REIT, our ownership of and 
relationship with our TRSs is limited and a failure to comply 
with the limits would jeopardize our REIT qualification and 
may result in the application of a 100% excise tax.

A REIT may own up to 100% of the stock of one or more TRSs. Subject 
to certain exemptions, a TRS may hold assets and earn income that 
would not be qualifying assets or income if held or earned directly by 
a REIT. Both the subsidiary and the REIT must jointly elect to treat the 
subsidiary as a TRS. A corporation of which a TRS directly or indirectly 
owns more than 35% of the voting power or value of the stock will 
automatically be treated as a TRS. The TRS rules limit the deductibility 
of interest paid or accrued by a TRS to its parent REIT to assure that 
the TRS is subject to an appropriate level of corporate taxation. The 
rules also impose a 100% excise tax on certain transactions between 
a TRS and its parent REIT that are not conducted on an arm’s-length 
basis. Our TRSs will pay U.S. federal, state and local income or 
franchise tax on their taxable income, and their after-tax net income 
will be available for distribution to us but will not be required to be 
distributed to us, unless necessary to maintain our REIT qualification. 

Overall, no more than 20% of the value of a REIT’s total assets may 
consist of stock or securities of one or more TRSs. In order to satisfy 
the TRS limitation, we may make loans to our TRSs that meet the 
requirements to be treated as qualifying investments of new capital, 
which are generally treated as real estate assets under the Internal 
Revenue Code. Because such loans are treated as real estate assets for 
purposes of the REIT requirements, we do not treat these loans as TRS 
securities for purposes of the TRS asset limitation, which is consistent 
with private rulings issued by the IRS. However, no assurance can 
be provided that the IRS may not successfully assert that such loans 
should be treated as securities of our TRSs, which could adversely 
impact our qualification as a REIT. In addition, our TRSs have obtained 
financing in transactions in which we and our other subsidiaries have 
provided guaranties and similar credit support. Although we believe 
that these financings are properly treated as financings of our TRSs 
for U.S. federal income tax purposes, no assurance can be provided 
that the IRS would not assert that such financings should be treated 
as issued by other entities in our structure, which could impact our 
compliance with the TRS limitation and the other REIT requirements. 
While we will be monitoring the aggregate value of the securities of 
our TRSs and intend to conduct our affairs so that such securities will 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

represent less than 20% of the value of our total assets, there can be 
no assurance that we will be able to comply with the TRS limitation 
in all market conditions. 

The tax on prohibited transactions limits our ability to 
engage in certain types of transactions, including certain 
methods of securitizing loans, which would be treated as 
sales for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

A REIT’s net income from prohibited transactions is subject to a 100% 
tax. In general, prohibited transactions are sales or other dispositions 
of property, other than foreclosure property, but including loans, held 
as inventory or primarily for sale to customers in the ordinary course of 
business. We might be subject to this tax if we were to sell or securitize 
loans in a manner that was treated as a sale of the loans as inventory 
for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Therefore, in order to avoid the 
prohibited transactions tax, we may choose not to engage in certain 
sales of loans, other than through a TRS, and we may be required 
to limit the structures we use for our securitization transactions, even 
though such sales or structures might otherwise be beneficial for us.

Complying with REIT requirements may limit our ability to 
hedge effectively.

The REIT provisions of the Internal Revenue Code may limit our ability 
to hedge our assets and operations. Under these provisions, any 
income that we generate from transactions intended to hedge our 
interest rate exposure will be excluded from gross income for purposes 
of the REIT 75% and 95% gross income tests if (i) the instrument 
(A) hedges interest rate risk on liabilities used to carry or acquire real 
estate assets or certain other specified types of risk, or (B) hedges 
an instrument described in clause (A) for a period following the 
extinguishment of the liability or the disposition of the asset that was 
previously hedged by the hedged instrument, and (ii) such instrument 
is properly identified under applicable Treasury Regulations. Income 
from hedging transactions that do not meet these requirements will 
generally constitute non-qualifying income for purposes of both the REIT 
75% and 95% gross income tests. As a result of these rules, we may 
have to limit our use of hedging techniques that might otherwise be 
advantageous or implement those hedges through a TRS. This could 
increase the cost of our hedging activities because our TRS would be 

Risks related to COVID-19

The current outbreak and spread of the COVID-19 
outbreak has disrupted, and is likely to further cause severe 
disruptions in, the U.S. and global economies and financial 
markets and create widespread business continuity and 
viability issues.

In recent years the outbreaks of a number of diseases, including Avian 
Bird Flu, H1N1, and various other “super bugs,” have increased the 
risk of a pandemic. In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus 
(COVID-19)  was  reported  to  have  surfaced  in  Wuhan,  China. 
COVID-19 has since spread to over 100 countries, including the United 
States. COVID-19 has also spread to every state in the United States 
and in regions where we have our executive offices and principal 
operations, and in regions where our projects and other investments 
are located or where they are managed. On March 11, 2020, the 
World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic, and on 

subject to tax on gains or the limits on our use of hedging techniques 
could expose us to greater risks associated with changes in interest 
rates than we would otherwise want to bear. In addition, losses in our 
TRS will generally not provide any tax benefit to us, although subject to 
limitation, such losses may be carried forward to offset future taxable 
income of the TRS.

Legislative, regulatory or administrative changes could 
adversely affect us.

The U.S. federal income tax laws and regulations governing REITs 
and their stockholders, as well as the administrative interpretations 
of  those  laws  and  regulations,  are  constantly  under  review  and 
may be changed at any time, possibly with retroactive effect. No 
assurance can be given as to whether, when, or in what form, the 
U.S. federal income tax laws applicable to us and our stockholders 
may be enacted. Changes to the U.S. federal income tax laws and 
interpretations of U.S. federal tax laws could adversely affect an 
investment in our common stock.

The TCJA, which was signed into law on December 22, 2017, 
significantly changes U.S. federal income tax laws applicable to 
businesses and their owners, including REITs and their stockholders, 
and may lessen the relative competitive advantage of operating as a 
REIT rather than as a C corporation. 

Liquidation of our assets may jeopardize our REIT 
qualification.

To qualify as a REIT, we must comply with requirements regarding our 
assets and our sources of income. If we are compelled to liquidate 
our assets to repay obligations to our lenders, we may be unable to 
comply with these requirements, thereby jeopardizing our qualification 
as a REIT, or we may be subject to a 100% tax on any resultant gain 
if we sell assets that are treated as inventory or property held primarily 
for sale to customers in the ordinary course of business.

Your investment has various U.S. federal income tax risks.

We urge you to consult your tax advisor concerning the effects of 
U.S. federal, state, local and foreign tax laws to you regarding an 
investment in shares of our common stock.

March 13, 2020, the United States declared a national emergency 
with respect to COVID-19. Since March 13, 2020, there have been 
a number of federal, state and local government initiatives to manage 
the spread of the virus and its impact on the economy, financial markets 
and continuity of businesses of all sizes and industries.

The impact and duration of COVID-19 or another pandemic, is having 
and could in the future have significant repercussions across regional, 
national and global economies and financial markets, and could 
trigger a period of regional, national and global economic slowdown 
or regional, national or global recessions. The outbreak of COVID-19 
in many countries continues to adversely impact regional, national and 
global economic activity and has contributed to significant volatility 
and negative pressure in financial markets. The impact of the outbreak 
has been rapidly evolving and, as cases of the virus have continued to 
increase around the world, many countries, including the United States, 

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Item 1A. Risk Factors

have reacted by instituting, among other things, quarantines and 
restrictions on travel.

Since  March,  in  an  attempt  to  control  COVID-19  the  Federal 
government and most states and/or local governments, including 
where we have our office (Maryland) and in regions where our 
projects  and  other  investments  are  located  or  where  they  are 
managed, have implemented various restrictions, rules, or guidelines 
including quarantines, restrictions on travel, “shelter in place”, “stay at 
home””, or “safer at home” rules, restrictions on types of business that 
may continue to operate, and/or restrictions on types of construction 
projects allowed. While some of these restrictions have been relaxed 
or phased out, many of these or similar restrictions remain in place, 
continue to be implemented, or additional restrictions are being 
considered. Although, in certain cases, exceptions may be available 
for  certain  essential  operations  and  businesses  which  generally 
include the renewable energy projects in which we invest, there is 
no assurance that such exceptions will enable us to avoid adverse 
effects to our results of operations and business. Further, such actions 
create disruption in energy efficiency, renewable energy, real estate 
and other sustainable infrastructure markets and adversely impact a 
number of industries.

We believe that our ability to operate and our level of business activity 
has been, and will in all likelihood continue to be, impacted by 
effects of COVID-19 and could in the future be impacted by another 
pandemic and that such impacts could adversely affect the profitability 
of our business, as well as the values of, and the cash flows from, 
the assets we own. For example, the effects of COVID-19 or another 
pandemic could adversely impact our financial condition and results 
of operations due to, among other factors: 

zz interrupted  service  and  availability  of  personnel,  including 
our executive officers and other employees that are part of our 
management team and an inability to recruit, attract and retain 
skilled personnel-to the extent our management or personnel are 
impacted by the outbreak of pandemic or epidemic disease and 
are not available or allowed to conduct work, our business and 
operating results may be negatively impacted;

zz difficulty accessing debt and equity capital on attractive terms, or at 
all, and severe disruption or instability in the global financial markets 
or deterioration in credit and financing conditions may affect our 
ability or the ability of our sustainable infrastructure projects and 
our ultimate off-taker or project users to make regular payments of 
principal, interest or project revenue (e.g., due to unemployment, 
underemployment, or reduced income or revenues) or to access 
savings or capital necessary to fund business operations or replace 
or renew maturing liabilities on a timely basis, and may adversely 
affect the valuation of financial assets and liabilities, any of which 
could result in the inability to make payments under our borrowing 
facilities or notes, affect our or our projects’ ability to meet liquidity, 
net worth, and leverage covenants under borrowing facilities or 
have a material adverse effect on the value of investments we hold 
or on our business, financial condition, results of operations and 
cash flows;

zz temporary  or  lasting  changes  involving  the  status,  practices 
and procedures of our or our projects or our projects’ sponsors’ 
operations, including with respect to new originations of investments -  
to the extent we elect or are required to limit or be more selective 
in making new originations of investments, we may strain our 
relationships with business partners, customers and counterparties, 
breach actual or perceived obligations to them, and be subject 

to  litigation  and  claims  from  such  partners,  customers  and 
counterparties, any of which could have a material adverse effect 
on our reputation, business, financial condition, results of operations 
and cash flows; moreover, some of our ultimate off-taker or project 
users’ operations, or our operations, the sustainable infrastructure 
markets or projects and our ultimate off-taker or project users have 
not been able to and others may not be able to function effectively 
because of, among other factors, disruptions in the normal operation 
of sustainable infrastructure markets or projects, any inability to 
access short-term or long-term financing, a disruption in the market 
for securitization transactions, or the inability to access these markets 
or execute securitization transactions due to negative impacts to 
our, our projects or our ultimate off-taker or project users financial 
condition or operating capabilities resulting from the COVID-19 
pandemic; any or all of these impacts could result in reduced net 
investment income and cash flow, as well as an impairment of our 
investments which reductions and impairments could be material;

zz to the extent ultimate off-taker or other project users that have been 
negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic do not timely 
remit payments of principal, interest or other payments (whether 
due to an inability to make such payments, an unwillingness to 
make such payments, or a waiver of the requirement to make such 
payments on a timely basis or at all, including under the terms of 
any applicable forbearance, modification, or maturity extension 
agreement or program (which forbearance, waiver, or maturity 
extension may be available as a result of a government-sponsored 
or -imposed program or under any such agreement or program we 
or our project sponsors may otherwise offer)), then the value of our 
investments will likely be impaired, potentially materially; moreover, 
to the extent any such pandemic impacts local, regional or national 
economic conditions, the value of a sustainable infrastructure project 
is likely to decline, which would likely negatively impact the value 
of our investments, potentially materially;

zz some of our sustainable infrastructure projects are being constructed 
and  others  are  subject  to  ongoing  maintenance;  planned 
construction or maintenance of some of these projects have not 
been able to proceed on a timely basis or at all and others may 
be similarly affected as a result of being negatively impacted by 
the COVID-19 pandemic, including due to operating disruptions or 
government mandated moratoriums on construction, development or 
redevelopment or the inability to source the necessary construction 
personnel, equipment or parts; all of the foregoing factors would 
likely negatively impact the value of our investments, potentially 
materially;

zz the inability of our project sponsors to operate in affected areas, 
including the bankruptcy of one or more project sponsors or their 
suppliers, or inability of our internal resources to effectively manage 
our  investments  in  certain  of  their  activities  or  perform  certain 
administration functions;

zz the inability of other third-party vendors we rely on to conduct our 
business to operate effectively and continue to support our business 
and operations, including vendors that provide IT services, legal and 
accounting services, or other operational support services;

zz the inability of our or our investments’ counterparties to make or 
satisfy the conditions, covenants or representations and warranties in 
agreements they have entered into with us or our counterparties; and

zz our ability to ensure operational continuity in the event our business 
continuity plan is not effective or ineffectually implemented or 
deployed during a disruption.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Our results could be adversely affected by counterparty 
credit risk.

The economic impact of COVID-19 and the associated volatility in the 
financial markets has triggered a period of economic slowdown or 
recession and could jeopardize the solvency and financial wherewithal 
of counterparties with whom we do business. In the event a counterparty 
to us or one of our sustainable infrastructure projects becomes insolvent 
or unable to make payments, we may fail to recover the full value of 
our investment or realize the value from the counterparty’s contract, 
thus reducing our earnings and liquidity. In addition, the insolvency of 
one or more of our, or one of our sustainable infrastructure projects’, 
counterparties could reduce the amount of financing available to us, 
which would make it more difficult for us to leverage the value of our 
assets and obtain substitute financing on attractive terms or at all. A 
material reduction in our financing sources or an adverse change in 
the terms of our financings could have a material adverse effect on 
our financial condition and results of operations.

The rapid development and fluidity of the circumstances resulting from 
this pandemic preclude any prediction as to the ultimate adverse 
impact  of  COVID-19.  Nevertheless,  COVID-19  and  the  current 
financial, economic and capital markets environment, and future 
developments in these and other areas present material uncertainty 
and risk with respect to our performance, financial condition, volume 
of business, results of operations and cash flows.

To the extent the COVID-19 pandemic adversely affects our business 
and financial results, it may also have the effect of heightening many 
of the other risks described in this ‘‘Risk Factors’’ section, as well as 
the Risk Factors in the Form 10-K, such as those relating to changes in 
interest rates, declining demand for our projects due to declining costs 
of traditionally-sourced energy, the lack of liquidity of our assets and 
investments, changes in the fair value of our assets, negative market 
conditions, our dependence on third-party contractual arrangements, 
our dependence on the availability of capital, changes in credit ratings 
assigned to our assets, counterparties to repurchase transactions’ 
defaulting on their obligations and our investments’ subjectivity to 
delinquency, foreclosure and loss.

ITEM 1B.  UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2.  PROPERTIES

Our principal executive offices are located at 1906 Towne Centre Blvd, Suite 370, Annapolis, Maryland 21401. Our telephone number is 
(410) 571-9860.

ITEM 3. 

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

From time to time, we may be involved in various claims and legal actions in the ordinary course of business. As of December 31, 2020, we 
are not currently subject to any legal proceedings that are likely to have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations 
or cash flows.

ITEM 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I I

PART II

ITEM 5.  MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER 

MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market information
Our common stock is traded on the NYSE under the symbol “HASI.”

Holders
As of February 18, 2021, we had 161 registered holders of our common stock. The 161 holders of record do not include the beneficial 
owners of our common stock whose shares are held by a broker or bank. Such information was obtained from The Depository Trust Company.

Dividends
We intend to make regular quarterly distributions to holders of our 
common stock. Any distributions we make will be at the discretion of 
our board of directors and will depend upon, among other things, 
our actual results of operations. These results and our ability to pay 
distributions will be affected by various factors, including the net 
interest and other income from our portfolio, our operating expenses 
and any other expenditures. See Item 1A. Risk Factors, and Item 7. 
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and 
Results of Operations, of this Form 10-K, for information regarding the 
sources of funds used for dividends and for a discussion of factors, 
if any, which may adversely affect our ability to pay dividends. 
See Note 11 of the audited financial statements in this Form 10-K for 
details of our dividends declared in 2020 and 2019.

Stockholder return performance
The stock performance graph and table below shall not be deemed, 
under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, to be (i) “soliciting 
material” or “filed” or (ii) incorporated by reference by any general 
statement into any filing made by us with the SEC, except to the extent 
that we specifically incorporate such stock performance graph and 
table by reference.

The following graph is a comparison of the cumulative total stockholder 
return from December 31, 2015 to December 31, 2020 on our 
shares of common stock, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (the “S&P 
500 Index”), and peer group indices, including the SNL Finance REIT 
Index, FTSE NAREIT All Equity REIT Index, Dow Jones Utility Average 
and Global X Renewable Energy Producers ETF. The graph assumes 
that $100 was invested at closing on December 31, 2015, in our 
shares of common stock, the S&P 500 Index, and the peer group 
indices and that all dividends were reinvested without the payment of 
any commissions. There can be no assurance that the performance of 

Additionally, as we are subject to the REIT requirements to distribute at 
least 90% of our REIT taxable income, there is a minimum amount of 
distributions that we are required to make. The taxable income of the 
REIT can vary from our GAAP earnings due to a number of different 
factors, including, the book to tax timing differences of income and 
expense recognition from our transactions as well as the amount of 
taxable income of our TRSs distributed to the REIT. See Note 10 
regarding the amount of our distributions that are taxed as ordinary 
income to our stockholders. 

our common stock will continue in line with the same or similar trends 
depicted in the graph below. In this Form 10-K we have added both 
the FTSE NAREIT All Equity REIT Index and the Global X Renewable 
Energy Producers ETF, which beginning with the 2021 Form 10-K 
will replace the SNL Finance REIT Index and the Dow Jones Utility 
Average as indices in this graph. As a growing, US-based, well-
diversified, mid-cap REIT, we believe these indices are well positioned 
to serve as peer group indices. The FTSE Nareit All Equity REITs Index 
is a free-float adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index of US 
equity REITs. Constituents of the index include all tax-qualified REITs 
with more than 50 percent of total assets in qualifying real estate 
assets other than mortgages secured by real property. The Global 
X Renewable Energy Producers ETF is comprised of companies who 
generally own or operate assets similar to our investments in renewable 
energy projects. 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

PA R T   I I

Comparison of Cumulative Total Return
(HASI, S&P 500 Index, SNL Finance REIT, FTSE NAREIT All Equity REIT Index,
Dow Jones Utility Average and Global X Renewable Energy Producers ETF)

$480

$440

$400

$360

$320

$280

$240

$200

$160

$120

$80

2015
2015

2016
2016

2017
2017

2018
2018

2019
2019

2020
2020

HASI

S&P 500

SNL Finance REIT

FTSE NAREIT All Equity REIT Index

Dow Jones Utility Average

Global X Renewable Energy Producers ETF

Company or Index

12/31/2015

12/31/2016

12/31/2017

12/31/2018

12/31/2019

12/31/2020

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable 
Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

S&P 500 Index

SNL Finance REIT Index(1)

FTSE NAREIT All Equity REIT Index

Dow Jones Utility Average

Global X Renewable Energy Producers ETF

$

100.00  $

106.65  $

143.24  $

121.22  $

214.65  $

442.07

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

100.00 

111.96 

123.18 

108.87 

118.18 

106.45 

136.40 

143.73 

118.31 

133.95 

128.82 

130.42 

138.16 

113.50 

136.61 

120.77 

171.49 

166.57 

146.01 

173.90 

165.52 

203.04 

135.75 

138.60 

176.83 

206.97 

Sources: Bloomberg L.P. and S&P Global Market Intelligence, a division of S&P Global
(1)  As of December 31, 2020, the SNL Finance REIT Index comprised of the following companies: AG Mortgage Investment Trust Inc.; AGNC Investment Corp.; American 
Church Mortgage Company; Annaly Capital Management Inc.; Anworth Mortgage Asset Corporation; Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc.; Arbor Realty Trust 
Inc.; Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation.; Arlington Asset Investment Corporation.; ARMOUR Residential REIT Inc.; Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc.; Broadmark 
Realty Capital Inc.; Capstead Mortgage Corporation.; Cherry Hill Mortgage Investment Corporation.; Chimera Investment Corporation.; Colony Credit Real Estate; Inc; 
CV Holdings Inc.; Dynex Capital Inc.; Ellington Financial Inc.; Ellington Residential Mortgage REIT; Exantas Capital Corp.; Granite Point Mortgage Trust; Great Ajax Corp.; 
Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.; Hunt Companies Finance Trust; Invesco Mortgage Capital Inc.; KKR Real Estate Finance Trust, Inc.; Ladder 
Capital Corp.; Manhattan Bridge Capital, Inc.; MFA Financial Inc.; New Residential Investment Corp.; New York Mortgage Trust Inc.; NexPoint Real Estate Finance, Inc.; 
Orchid Island Capital Inc.; PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust; Ready Capital Corp.; Redwood Trust Inc.; Sachem Capital Corp.; Starwood Property Trust Inc.; TPG RE 
Finance Trust Inc; Tremont Mortgage Trust; Two Harbors Investment Corporation.; and Western Asset Mortgage Capital Corporation.

Purchases of equity securities by the issuer and affiliated purchasers 
The table below summarizes all of our repurchases of common stock during 2020.

Period

February 1 – February 29, 2020

March 1 – March 31, 2020

May 1 – May 31, 2020

Total number
of shares
purchased(1)

Average price
per share

165,090  $

267,653 

47,516 

38.13

36.14 

27.79 

Total number of
shares purchased
as part of publicly
announced plans
or programs

Maximum number
of shares that may
yet be purchased
under the plans or
programs

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

(1)  During the year ended December 31, 2020, certain of our employees surrendered common stock owned by them to satisfy their tax and other compensation related 
withholdings associated with the vesting of restricted stock and restricted stock units. 57,400 OP units were exchanged for shares of common stock during the year ended 
December 31, 2020. The price paid per share is based on the closing price of our common stock as of the date of the exchange and withholding.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I I

Item 6. Selected Financial Data

ITEM 6.  SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

None.

ITEM 7.  MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION 

AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and accompanying notes included in Item 8. Financial 
Statements and Supplementary Data, of this Form 10-K. Refer to ‘Item 7 -- Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and 
Results of Operations’ on our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 for a discussion of our results for the year ended December 31,  
2018 and a comparison of our results of operations for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018. 

Overview
We invest in climate solutions developed by the leading companies 
in the energy efficiency, renewable energy and other sustainable 
infrastructure markets. We believe we are one of the first U.S. public 
companies solely dedicated to such climate change investments. 
Our goal is to generate attractive returns from a diversified portfolio 
of  projects  with  long-term,  predictable  cash  flows  from  proven 
technologies that reduce carbon emissions or increase resilience to 
climate change.

We  are  internally  managed,  and  our  management  team  has 
extensive relevant industry knowledge and experience, dating back 
more than 30 years. We have long-standing relationships with the 
leading energy service companies (“ESCOs”), manufacturers, project 
developers, utilities, owners and operators. Our origination strategy 
is to use these relationships to generate recurring, programmatic 
investment and fee-generating opportunities. Additionally, we have 
relationships with leading banks, investment banks, and institutional 
investors from which we are referred additional investment and fee 
generating opportunities.

We completed approximately $1.9 billion of transactions during 
2020, compared to approximately $1.3 billion during 2019. As 
of December 31, 2020, we held approximately $2.9 billion of 

Market conditions 
As a result of increasing global awareness of and aversion to climate 
change impacts, we believe the sustainable infrastructure markets in 
which we invest, and investment in climate solutions more broadly, will 
continue to grow as the impact of climate change increases. In January 
2021, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”) 
reported that 2020 was the second warmest year on record, with all 
seven of the warmest years on record having occurred since 2014. 

Further, communities across the globe are increasingly experiencing 
the destructive economic impacts of climate change, which are only 
expected to increase in frequency and severity. According to the U.S. 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”), there 
were 22 natural disaster events in the United States in 2020, with an 
estimated individual cost of greater than $1 billion and an aggregate 
cost of approximately $95 billion. NOAA reports, that since 1980, 
the U.S. has sustained 285 separate billion-dollar weather events and 
climate disasters with cumulative costs exceeding $1.9 trillion dollars. 
In its Weather, Climate & Catastrophe Insight: 2020 Annual Report, 

transactions  on  our  balance  sheet,  which  we  refer  to  as  our 
“Portfolio.” For those transactions that we choose not to hold on our 
balance sheet, we transfer all or a portion of the economics of the 
transaction, typically using securitization trusts, to institutional investors 
in exchange for cash and in certain cases, residual interests in the 
assets and ongoing fees. As of December 31, 2020, we managed 
approximately $4.3 billion in these trusts or vehicles that are not 
consolidated on our balance sheet. When combined with our Portfolio, 
as of December 31, 2020, we manage approximately $7.2 billion 
of assets, which we refer to as our “Managed Assets”.

Our  investments  have  taken  many  forms,  including  equity,  joint 
ventures, land ownership, lending, or other financing transactions. 
We  also  generate  ongoing  fees  through  off-balance  sheet 
securitization transactions, services, and asset management. We use 
borrowings as part of our strategy to increase potential returns to our 
stockholders and have available a broad range of financing sources 
including non-recourse or recourse debt, equity and off-balance sheet 
securitization structures.

See Item 1. Business for a further discussion of our business, investing 
strategy, and financing strategy.

Aon reports that there were 416 natural catastrophe events globally 
in 2020, resulting in economic losses of $268 billion representing 
increased losses of 8% compared to the century average.

BloombergNEF (“BNEF”) reported in January 2021, that carbon 
solutions  investment  exceeded  $500  billion  annually  with  $85 
billion being invested in the United States. In its Energy Efficiency 
2020 report, the International Energy Agency (“IEA”) estimates global 
spending on energy efficiency at approximately $250 billion. Given 
that many projects are often self-financed (especially energy efficiency), 
we believe our total addressable market is likely a subset of these 
overall industry estimates. However, we believe these estimates are 
reliable indicators of market trends. 

These positive industry trends coupled with the increasing environmental 
and economic imperative to reduce carbon emissions are expected 
to further broaden our investable universe. Investments in energy 
efficiency as a service allow organizations to avoid the upfront costs 
of efficiency investments by paying for efficiency-enabled cost savings 

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PA R T   I I

as operating rather than capital expenses. In its Annual Energy Outlook 
2021, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (“EIA”) estimates 
that decreasing energy intensity resulting from energy efficiency 
improvements will keep U.S. energy consumption for residential 
and commercial buildings growing at a level far below that of the 
U.S. economy. In addition, Lazard’s 2020 Levelized Cost of Energy 
Analysis shows that renewables continue to outperform traditional 
generation sources on a new-built cost basis with certain renewable 
technologies achieving competitiveness with existing conventional 
generation technologies on a marginal basis, making renewables 
even more attractive investment targets. Further, in its New Energy 
Outlook 2020, BNEF expects wind and solar generation to provide 
56% of the world’s electricity by 2050, with renewables attracting 
$11 trillion of aggregate investment over this time period. 

We expect the federal government to take, and they have taken, certain 
actions which are supportive of the industry for climate solutions. In 
December 2020, Congress extended the end date to December 2022 
for qualifying property being eligible for the 26% investment tax credit 
for photovoltaic solar projects. The new presidential administration has 
taken immediate steps at the federal level which we believe signify 
support for climate solutions, including, but not limited to, rejoining the 
Paris Climate Accords and re-establishing a social price on carbon 
used in cost/benefit analysis for policy making. We expect the new 
administration, combined with a closely divided Congress, will result 
in additional regulations supportive of the markets in which we invest. 

State governmental agencies are responding to climate change risks 
through the implementation of renewable portfolio standards (“RPS”) 
as well as energy reduction targets such as energy efficiency resource 
standards. According to the UCLA Luskin Center of Innovation one 
in three Americans lives in a city or state that has committed to, 
or already achieved, 100% clean electricity. Corporates are also 
responding to climate change risks - in part through renewable energy 
sourcing commitments. In its 2020 Annual Report, the RE 100, a 
global corporate leadership initiative bringing together influential 
businesses committed to 100% renewable electricity, reported that 
over 260 multinational companies have pledged to achieve 100% 
renewable energy with an average target date of 2028, with three 
quarters of those companies planning to reach 100% renewable 
energy by 2030. 

service men and women, and creating private sector jobs. Support 
for ESPCs remain bipartisan, and the new presidential administration 
is expected to continue to support the program. DOE announced that 
fiscal year 2020 was the most successful year in the history of the 
ESPC program, with over $842 million invested in qualifying projects, 
the third consecutive record year in the history of the program. 

While we believe that the long-term growth prospects for our business 
remain positive, volatility in financial markets and commodity prices 
along with interest rate movements could impact the markets we serve. 
Further, the current interest rate environment of low yields coupled 
with increasing investor acceptance of our markets has increased 
competitive pressure. In 2020, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors 
lowered the rate at which banks lend to one another (known as the 
federal funds rate) to a range of 0 to 25 basis points. The Federal 
Reserve Board of Governors has indicated that their plan is to keep 
rates at this level for some time, until labor market conditions recover 
from the COVID-19 pandemic and their inflation target of 2 percent 
is met. See “Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about 
Market Risk-Interest Rate and Borrowing Risks” for an analysis of the 
impact of rates on our business.

According to the Department of Energy, average annual Henry Hub 
natural gas prices decreased by over 50% from 2014 to 2020, 
and its 2021 outlook forecasts that prices will stay below pre-2010 
levels through 2050. As wholesale electricity prices are closely tied 
to wholesale natural gas prices in many parts of the United States, 
lower natural gas prices have negatively impacted, and are expected 
to continue to negatively impact, renewable energy projects that sell 
wholesale power on a “merchant” basis at spot market prices. For 
more detail on commodity price impacts, see “Item 7A. Quantitative 
and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk-Commodity Price Risk”. 
We attempt to mitigate our exposure to these low commodity prices 
and future volatility, as well as any credit risk associated with these 
prices, by acquiring projects with contracted revenues, negotiating 
certain structural protections such as preferred returns, and through 
active asset management and portfolio monitoring. Similarly, we seek 
to manage credit risk that might arise from commodity price declines 
through our due diligence and underwriting processes, strong structural 
protections in our transaction agreements with customers, and active 
asset management and portfolio monitoring. 

Federal Energy Savings Performance Contracts (“ESPCs”) are an 
example of a public-private partnership that eliminate the need for 
a federal agency to find appropriated funds to replace, operate, 
and maintain energy-intensive equipment while also providing multiple 
ancillary benefits, including saving taxpayer dollars currently spent on 
energy consumption, improving conditions for federal workers and 

Notwithstanding any concerns that current market conditions have 
raised for our business, we believe significant opportunities exist for 
us to grow our business. As a long-term participant committed to 
providing capital for sustainable infrastructure, we plan to continue 
to fund projects that meet our underwriting standards and look for 
opportunities to expand our business.

Factors impacting our operating results
We expect that our results of operations will be affected by a number 
of factors and will primarily depend on the size of our Portfolio, 
including the mix of transactions which we hold in our Portfolio, 
the income we receive from securitizations, syndications and other 
services, our Portfolio’s credit risk profile, changes in market interest 
rates, commodity prices, federal, state and/or municipal governmental 
policies, general market conditions in local, regional and national 
economies, our ability to qualify as a REIT and maintain our exemption 
from registration as an investment company under the 1940 Act and, 
the impact of climate change, and the impact of the novel coronavirus 
(COVID-19).

Portfolio Size

The size of our Portfolio will be a key revenue driver. Generally, as 
the size of our Portfolio on our balance sheet grows the amount of our 
revenue will increase. Our Portfolio may grow at an uneven pace as 
opportunities to originate new assets may be irregularly timed, and the 
timing and extent of our success in such originations cannot be predicted. 
To the extent the size of our Portfolio changes due to equity method 
investment activity, the income or loss from such investments will not be 
included in revenue but are reflected as income (loss) from equity method 
investments in our income statement and will vary over time. In addition, 

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PA R T   I I

we may decide for any particular asset that we should securitize or 
otherwise sell a portion, or all, of the asset, which would result in gain 
on sale of receivables and investments or fee income as described 
below. The level of portfolio activity will fluctuate from period to period 
based upon the market demand for the capital we provide, our view of 
economic fundamentals including interest rates, the present mix of our 
Portfolio, our ability to identify new opportunities that meet our investment 
criteria, the volume of projects that have advanced to stages where we 
believe a transaction is appropriate, seasonality in our activities and 
in the various projects where we may provide debt or equity and our 
ability to consummate the identified opportunities, including as a result 
of our available capital. The level of our new origination activity, the 
percentage of the originations that we choose to retain on our balance 
sheet and the related income, will directly impact our interest and rental 
revenue and income from equity method investments.

Income from Securitization, Syndication and Other Services

We will also earn gain on sale of financial assets or fee income 
by securitizing or selling all or a portion of certain transactions. 
For transactions that we securitize via a non-consolidated trust, we 
recognize a gain on the securitization. The gain may be comprised 
of both cash received and a residual interest in securitized assets. We 
may also recognize additional income from servicing fees from these 
securitized assets over the life of the asset.

In many cases, we arrange the securitization of the loan or other asset 
prior to originating the transaction and thus have avoided exposure to 
credit spread and interest rate risks that are typically associated with 
traditional capital markets conduit transactions. In these cases, we 
avoid funding risks for these financings or other assets given that our 
securitization partners contractually agree to fund such assets before 
the origination transaction is completed.

We also generate fee income for syndications where we arrange 
financings  that  are  held  by  other  investors  or  if  we  sell  existing 
transactions to other investors. In these transactions, unless we decide 
to hold a portion of the economic interest of the transaction on our 
balance sheet, we have no exposure to risks related to ownership of 
those financings. We may charge advisory, retainer or other fees, 
including through our broker dealer subsidiary. 

The gain on sale income and our other sources of fee income will also 
vary depending on the level of our new origination activity and the 
portion of originated assets we decide to transfer to other investors. 
We view this revenue from such activities as a valuable component 
of our earnings and an important source of franchise value. The 
total amount of income from securitizations, syndications, and other 
services will vary on a quarter to quarter basis depending on various 
factors, including the level of our originations, the duration, credit 
quality and types of assets we originate, current and anticipated future 
interest rates, the impact on our leverage, the potential income from 
a securitization or syndication, the mix of our Portfolio and our need 
to tailor our mix of assets in order to allow us to qualify as a REIT for 
U.S. federal income tax purposes and maintain our exemption from 
registration under the 1940 Act.

Credit Risks

We source and identify quality opportunities within our broad areas 
of expertise and apply our rigorous underwriting processes to our 
transactions, which, we believe, will generally enable us to minimize 

our credit losses and maintain our current level of financing costs. In the 
case of various renewable energy and other sustainable infrastructure 
projects, we will be exposed to the credit risk of the obligor of the 
project’s PPA or other long-term contractual revenue commitments, as 
well as to the credit risk of certain suppliers and project operators. 
While we do not anticipate facing significant credit risk in our assets 
related to government energy efficiency projects, we are subject to 
varying degrees of credit risk in these projects in relation to payment 
guarantees provided by ESCOs that are required in the event that 
certain energy savings are not realized by the customer. We are also 
exposed to credit risk in our other projects that do not benefit from 
governments as the obligor such as on balance sheet financing of 
projects undertaken by universities, schools and hospitals, as well as 
privately owned commercial projects. We have extended mezzanine 
loans to various special purpose entities which own residential solar 
projects, and the ultimate repayment of those loans is dependent on the 
creditworthiness of the related residential obligors. Our level of credit 
risk has increased, and is expected to continue to increase, as our 
strategy contemplates new investments in mezzanine debt and equity. 
We seek to manage credit risk through thorough due diligence and 
underwriting processes, strong structural protections in our transaction 
agreements with customers and continual, active asset management 
and portfolio monitoring. Nevertheless, unanticipated credit losses 
could occur and during periods of economic downturn in the global 
economy, our exposure to credit risks from obligors increases, and 
our efforts to monitor and mitigate the associated risks may not be 
effective in reducing our credit losses. See Item 7A. Quantitative and 
Qualitative Disclosures about Credit Risks for further information on 
our credit risks and see Note 6 of our audited financial statements 
in this Form 10-K for additional detail of the credit risks surrounding 
our Portfolio.

Changes in Market Interest Rates and Liquidity

Interest  rate  risk  is  highly  sensitive  to  many  factors,  including 
governmental monetary and tax policies, domestic and international 
economic and political considerations and other factors beyond our 
control. We are subject to interest rate risk in connection with new 
asset originations and our borrowings, including our credit facilities, 
and in the future, any new floating rate assets, credit facilities or other 
borrowings. See Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures 
about Market Risk for further information on interest rates risks and 
liquidity. 

Commodity Prices

When we make investments in a project that act as a substitute for an 
underlying commodity, we may be exposed to volatility in prices for 
that commodity. For example, the performance of renewable energy 
projects that produce electricity can be impacted by volatility in the 
market prices of various forms of energy, including electricity, coal 
and natural gas. This is especially true for utility scale projects that 
sell power on a wholesale basis such as many of our Grid-Connected 
projects as opposed to Behind-the-Meter projects which compete 
against the retail or delivered costs of electricity which includes the 
cost of transmitting and distributing the electricity to the end user. See 
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk 
for further information on the impact of commodity prices.

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PA R T   I I

Government Policies

We make investments in renewable energy projects that typically 
depend in part on various federal, state or local governmental policies 
that support or enhance the project’s economic feasibility. Such policies 
may include governmental initiatives, laws and regulations designed to 
reduce energy usage and impact the use of renewable energy or the 
investment in, and the use of, sustainable infrastructure. Policies and 
incentives provided by the U.S. federal government may include tax 
credits (with some of these tax credits that are related to renewable 
energy scheduled to be reduced or eliminated in the future), tax 
deductions, bonus depreciation, federal grants and loan guarantees, 
and energy market regulations. The value of tax credits, deductions 
and incentives may be impacted by changes in tax laws rates or 
regulations, including as a result of the TCJA.

Incentives provided by state and local governments may include a 
RPS or similar clean energy standard, which specify the portion of the 
power utilized by local utilities that must be derived from renewable 
or clean energy sources as well as the state or local government 
sponsored  programs  where  the  financing  of  energy  efficiency 
or renewable energy projects is repaid through an assessment in 
the property tax bill in a program commonly referred to as PACE. 
Additionally, certain states have implemented feed-in or net metering 
tariffs, pursuant to which electricity generated from renewable energy 
sources is purchased at a higher rate than prevailing wholesale rates. 
Other incentives include tariffs, tax incentives and other cash and 
non-cash payments.

Governmental  agencies,  commercial  entities  and  developers  of 
sustainable infrastructure projects frequently depend on these policies 
and incentives to help defray the costs associated with, and to finance, 
various projects. Government regulations also impact the terms of third 
party financing provided to support these projects. If any of these 
government policies, incentives or regulations are adversely amended, 
delayed, eliminated, reduced, retroactively changed or not extended 
beyond their current expiration dates or there is a negative impact from 
the recent federal law changes or proposals, the operating results of 
the projects we finance and the demand for, and the returns available 
from our investments may decline, which could harm our business.

Impacts of climate change on our future operations  

As  our  business  is  focused  on  reducing  carbon  emissions  and 
increasing resiliency to climate change, we are impacted by the 
effects of climate change and various related regulatory responses. 
In managing our business, we consider the potential impacts to our 
operations that may result in certain climate-related scenarios. In 2018, 
we began to implement the recommendations of the TCFD. The TCFD 
provides a framework to consider and disclose our processes for 
managing the risks and opportunities associated with climate change. 
We have disclosed the components of the TCFD framework throughout 
this document. The following tables highlight our evaluation of potential 
impacts to our business in two climate related scenarios as well as our 
resilience and strategy to handling the potential impacts. 

Transition Risks and Opportunities - We believe our investment portfolio 
will be impacted by the transition risks and opportunities contemplated 
by the Paris Accords and the achievement of its objectives. 

Scenario 1 - Global action is taken to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels 

Assumption

Qualitative impacts

Quantitative impacts

If the overall price level of RECs 
increased by 5% we would not 
expect a material impact to the 
overall cash flows from our existing 
investments. The is largely due 
to the lower value of RECs in 
comparison to power prices in 
most of the markets where our 
investments are located. 

The price of Renewable 
Energy Credits (“RECs”) or 
similar structures increase as 
more aggressive renewable 
portfolio standards and 
corporate renewable energy 
targets are implemented

Increased expected cash flows and 
financial returns for certain of our 
investments to the extent the RECs are 
sold at higher market prices.

Increased debt/lease service coverage 
ratio for the obligors of our renewable 
energy debt investments and solar real 
estate leases that sell RECs at higher 
market pricing.

The resulting increase in cash flows may 
also allow us to apply greater financial 
leverage to these investments and 
enhance our profitability.

If there was a material increase in value 
associated with RECs, it is likely that 
more renewable energy projects would 
be developed in geographic areas 
where the RECs were more valuable, 
leading to more potential investment 
opportunities for us.

Considerations of and impact  
on our management strategy

We may identify more investment 
opportunities resulting from the 
increased REC value. In addition, 
to the extent that our investments 
become more valuable we would 
consider whether it would be more 
economical to our stockholders 
to either monetize the investment 
given the increase in value or 
continue to hold in our Portfolio 
and maximize our returns from 
adding additional leverage to our 
financing.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

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Assumption

Qualitative impacts

Quantitative impacts

A carbon tax or similar 
carbon pricing mechanism 
is implemented by 
governmental authorities 
which may cause an 
increase to (i) power prices, 
(ii) operating costs for 
certain entities, and (iii) the 
competitiveness of renewable 
energy, energy efficiency 
and storage projects

A significant increase in 
research and re-development 
investment in renewable 
energy, energy storage, 
and energy efficiency 
technologies by public and 
private entities

Increased cash flows and financial 
returns from certain investments to 
the extent power is sold at higher 
market prices due to the increase in 
cost imposed on fossil fueled energy 
projects.

Increases in the debt/lease service 
coverage ratio for the obligors of our 
renewable energy debt investments and 
solar real estate leases that sell power at 
higher market pricing.

The resulting increase in cash flows may 
also allow us to apply greater financial 
leverage to these investments and 
enhance our profitability.

Increased energy cost savings from 
energy efficiency solutions.

Increased competitiveness of renewable 
energy projects with fossil fueled power 
plants, due to an increase in power 
prices.

An increase in the items mentioned 
above may increase the volume of 
assets available in which we can invest.

However, the implementation of a 
carbon tax may also have a negative 
impact on the financial health of 
utilities and corporate entities who also 
purchase power from renewable energy 
projects in which we have invested. 
The credit ratings of these entities may 
be downgraded due to additional 
operating expenses resulting from a 
carbon tax. A credit rating downgrade 
may reduce the amount of financial 
leverage we are able to utilize. If this 
were to occur, our overall profitability 
could decline.

Continued decreases in cost could make 
renewable energy, energy storage, and 
energy efficiency technologies more 
cost competitive. As a result, we may 
experience an increase in investment 
opportunities available to us.

Significant growth in 
positive public sentiment for 
sustainable infrastructure 
investment

Increased demand for investment in 
sustainable infrastructure increase the 
volume of transactions in which we may 
invest, reduce our overall cost of capital 
and increase our profitability.

4 6  |   

A portion of our portfolio is 
exposed to changes in the market 
price of power. Whether it is due 
to sales of energy at the then 
current market price or through a 
re-contracting of fixed price power 
purchase agreements. 

Under a scenario where a carbon 
tax drives the price of power up by 
10%, our wind equity investments 
may generate approximately 6% 
in additional cashflows over their 
life as compared to the cashflow 
the investments are expected to 
generate under the current baseline 
scenario.

We would not expect a material 
impact to our solar equity, 
renewable energy debt, solar 
real estate or energy efficiency 
investments. 

Considerations of and impact  
on our management strategy

In relation to new business, there is 
the potential that more competitors 
enter our markets and put pressure 
on our asset pricing strategies as 
renewable energy and energy 
efficiency projects become more 
cost competitive with fossil fuel 
electricity generation assets. We 
are constantly reviewing our pricing 
strategies and would continue to 
do so in this scenario to understand 
how we can continue to make 
investments with acceptable risk 
adjusted returns. 

In addition, to the extent that our 
investments become more valuable 
we would consider whether it 
would be more economical to our 
stockholders to either monetize 
the investment given the increase 
in value or continue to hold in our 
portfolio and maximize our returns 
from adding additional leverage to 
our financing. 

Given the nature of our business 
activities and focus on structuring 
transactions to meet the capital 
needs of our clients, it is difficult to 
reliably quantify the positive impact 
on our investment opportunities. 
However, we would expect to 
achieve accretive economics from 
this assumption. 

Given the nature of our business 
activities and focus on structuring 
transactions to meet the capital 
needs of our clients, it is difficult to 
reliably quantify the positive impact 
on our investment opportunities. 
However, we would expect to 
achieve accretive economics from 
this assumption. 

In the development of our 
investment strategies we would 
consider investment in different 
technologies that we may not have 
historically invested based upon 
the additional development and 
maturation gained through the 
prospective increase in research 
and development. Additionally, the 
lower cost of projects may influence 
the amount of investment we would 
make in each opportunity. 

An increased demand for 
sustainable infrastructure may 
increase competition and influence 
our pricing strategy. We would 
continue to review our pricing 
strategies with these opportunities. 

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

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Scenario 2 - Global temperatures increase more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels 

Assumption

Qualitative impacts

Quantitative impacts

No meaningful government policy 
to shift the trajectory of global 
climate change

An increase in demand for 
climate change resiliency 
solutions

Greater variability and instability 
in the commodity markets

Given the nature of our business 
activities and focus on structuring 
transactions to meet the capital 
needs of our clients, it is difficult to 
reliably quantify the impact on our 
investment opportunities. However, 
we would expect to achieve 
accretive economics from this 
assumption. 

Given the nature of our business 
activities and focus on structuring 
transactions to meet the capital 
needs of our clients, it is difficult to 
reliably quantify the positive impact 
on our investment opportunities. 
However, we would expect to 
achieve accretive economics from 
this assumption. 

We believe any mentioned impacts 
that are realized, are short-term in 
nature and we would not expect a 
material impact on our investments.

Given current trends, even without 
an increase in government support, 
we might expect increased 
demand for climate solutions due 
to the improving economics and 
cost competitiveness of these 
technologies.

Such growth in demand may 
increase the volume of investment 
opportunities available to us.

Flooding and storm surges may 
become more frequent, resulting in 
an increase in demand for storm 
water management assets.

Greater instability in the power 
grid may increase the demand 
for on-site and distributed power 
generation systems and battery 
storage.

If the above events occur, we may 
experience an increase in the 
volume of investment opportunities 
available to us.

Potential increases in the price of 
commodities (e.g., natural gas) due 
to climate change induced supply 
chain and transport disruptions, 
such as a major hurricane striking 
a series of gulf coast pipelines, 
may drive power prices higher, thus 
increasing financial returns from 
certain of our investments to the 
extent the power is sold at market 
prices rather than under fixed price 
contracts.

However, climate change-related 
impacts to the amount of potable 
water supplies, such as irregular 
rainfall and salt water intrusion, 
may drive increases in the price of 
water. These increases in cost may 
increase the demand for assets 
that increase water use efficiency, 
resulting in an increase in the 
volume of investment opportunities 
available to us.

Considerations of and impact  
to our management strategy

The increased demand in climate 
solutions may increase competition 
and influence our pricing strategy.

The increased demand in climate 
solutions may increase competition 
and influence our pricing strategy.

We currently have risk 
management processes which 
include a recurring review of our 
investments through our portfolio 
management function to assess 
any increasing operational costs 
of our investments. For our existing 
portfolio, we will actively manage 
the risk to make appropriate 
adjustments to budget approvals, 
operational approvals, and other 
asset management tasks. For 
any new investments, we make 
conservative assumptions to 
protect our investments from such 
types of pricing volatility and will 
continue to do so, including new 
assumptions around commodity 
volatility as relevant.

Physical Risks and Opportunities - Given the assessments of the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and other leading 
climate research organizations regarding the probability of a 1.5 Celsius increase in global temperature and serious climatic impacts even with 
the most aggressive emissions reduction initiatives, we believe our portfolio will be impacted by physical risks regardless of the actions taken 
as discussed above. We assume the types of risks to which our portfolio is exposed are similar under either Scenario 1 or 2 (albeit at varying 
degrees of severity). 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

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Scenario 1 - Global action is taken to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and 
Scenario 2 - Global temperatures increase more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. 

Assumption

Qualitative impacts

Quantitative impacts

Increased (i) flooding events due 
to heavier rainfalls and increased 
storm surge due to rising sea 
levels, (ii) the probability and 
severity of wildfires and (iii) 
increased frequency and severity 
of storms and other weather-
related events

Our existing investments in low 
lying areas are exposed to 
potential flooding events and other 
storm damage and such events 
may cause construction delays, 
operational shutdowns, and more 
significant site damage. 

We would not expect a material 
risk to the cash flows from our 
investments as we typically require 
insurance coverage for these events 
where the project owner bears 
this cost. Refer to later discussion 
on the impacts of the increase in 
insurance costs.

A portion of our investments are 
located in high wildfire risk regions 
and are exposed to catastrophic 
damage from wildfire events. 

We would not expect a material 
risk to the cash flows from our 
investments as we typically require 
insurance coverage for these events 
where the project owner bears 
this cost. Refer to later discussion 
on the impacts of the increase in 
insurance costs.

Solar energy assets that are not in 
the direct path of wildfires but are 
within the proximity thereof may have 
reduced power production due to 
ash soiling on the panels or reduced 
solar insolation due to ash clouds.

The potential impact of additional 
soiling of panels or ash clouds 
was assessed and is not expected 
to have a material impact on 
the cashflows and value of our 
portfolio.

Considerations of and impact  
to our management strategy

When underwriting our investments 
we negotiate structural protections 
to mitigate any loss we may incur 
from operations or inability of the 
projects to operate (this includes 
project insurance). For any new 
investment opportunities we would 
evaluate the exposure to rising sea 
levels and structure our investment 
terms such that we protect our 
invested capital. 

When underwriting our investments 
we negotiate structural protections 
to mitigate any loss we may incur 
from operations or inability of the 
projects to operate (this includes 
project insurance). For any new 
investment opportunities we would 
evaluate the exposure to wildfires 
and structure our investment terms 
such that we protect our invested 
capital. 

To the extent this became a 
material issue we would seek out 
protections to mitigate any impact 
of this, such as adding panel 
washing requirements to contracts.

Operational performance of 
the projects in which we invest 
are impacted by the global 
temperature increase

If the events above were to occur, 
we may experience reduced cash 
flows and financial returns from 
these investments, which may 
cause us to reduce the amount of 
financial leverage we utilize and 
cause a decline in our overall 
profitability. 

A decrease in performance and 
power generation of the solar and 
wind energy assets related to our 
investments, as the performance of 
these assets vary based upon the 
ambient temperatures (in the case 
of solar) and air density (in the 
case of wind). Both conditions may 
be caused by increases in global 
temperatures. 

4 8  |   

When underwriting our investment 
opportunities we make conservative 
assumptions regarding performance 
and operational expenses that 
protect our returns from some 
level of unexpected performance 
or operation issues in the future. 
We will continue to adjust our 
assumptions as additional risks 
and severity of climate risk are 
assessed. We actively manage our 
existing portfolio to preemptively 
and proactively address any 
operational or maintenance issues. 

Solar portfolio production can be 
affected by an increase in global 
temperature depending on the 
geography. If solar production 
decreases by 5% we may expect 
there to be a 11% decrease in 
expected cash flows from our solar 
equity investments. 

High temperatures have a 
significant efficiency impact on 
wind turbines as high temperature 
faults create more wear and tear 
on equipment. If wind production 
decreases by 5% the cash flows 
from our wind equity investments 
would be expected to decrease 
by 7%.

We would not expect a material 
impact on our renewable energy 
debt, solar real estate and energy 
efficiency investments. 

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

Assumption

Qualitative impacts

Quantitative impacts

Considerations of and impact  
to our management strategy

An increase in water scarcity 
potentially resulting in an 
increase in the price of water

An increase in the cost, or a 
change in the availability of 
insurance

Increased wind variability and 
increased wear on wind turbine 
components, which may increase 
operating costs.

Increased operating costs and 
lower generation from the increase 
in temperatures may reduce our 
expected cash flows and financial 
returns from our investments, which 
may cause us to reduce the amount 
of financial leverage we utilize 
and cause a decline in our overall 
profitability. 

Water is used to clean the panels 
on solar energy assets to maintain 
their efficiency. An increase in 
water prices may reduce the cash 
flows and financial returns from 
our related investments, which may 
cause us to reduce the amount of 
financial leverage we utilize and 
cause a decline in our overall 
profitability. 

Climate change related impacts 
to the amount of potable water 
supplies, such as irregular rainfall 
and salt water intrusion, may 
drive increases in the price of 
water. These increases in cost may 
increase the demand for assets 
that increase water use efficiency 
resulting in an increase in the 
volume of investment opportunities 
available to us. 

In anticipation of climate change 
related physical risks, projects 
related to our investments in 
particularly vulnerable regions, such 
as low-lying coastal areas, may 
face increases in insurance costs. 
An increase in insurance costs may 
reduce the cash flows and financial 
returns from these investments and 
may cause us to reduce the amount 
of financial leverage we utilize 
and cause a decline in our overall 
profitability.

An increase in operating expenses 
would result and if there was 5% 
higher operating expenses the 
cash flows from our wind equity 
investments would be expected to 
decrease by 1%.

If there were both a decrease 
in production of 5% and higher 
operating expenses of 5% our cash 
flows from our wind equity and 
solar equity investments would be 
expected to decline by 8% and 
12%, respectively. We would not 
expect a material impact on our 
renewable energy debt, solar 
real estate and energy efficiency 
investments. 

The impact of water scarcity and 
increased prices to our existing 
portfolio is not expected to have a 
material impact on the cash flows 
of our investments. 

Insurance policies are executed 
on an annual basis and in some 
regions the price of insurance could 
increase such that the cashflow and 
value of our projects in high risk 
geographic regions are affected. 
This increase in insurance cost 
would drive an increase in total 
operating expenses. We have 
estimated that an increase in 
operating expenses of 5% would 
be expected to reduce our cash 
flows from wind equity and solar 
equity projects by 1% and 2%, 
respectively. 

We would not expect a material 
impact on our renewable energy 
debt, solar real estate and energy 
efficiency investments.

To the extent this becomes a 
material matter we would seek out 
protections to mitigate any impact 
of additional water related costs. 

The increased demand in these 
projects may increase competition 
and influence our pricing strategy.

We require that the projects 
in which we invest are insured 
against casualty events that could 
impact our cash distributions. We 
continually evaluate whether there 
are superior asset or portfolio level 
policies that are available that 
optimize our insurance coverage 
and premium costs.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

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Impact of COVID-19

The current outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is having an 
ongoing impact on the U.S., regional and global economies, the U.S. 
sustainable infrastructure market and the broader financial markets.

Since  March,  in  an  attempt  to  control  COVID-19  the  Federal 
government and most states and/or local governments, including 
where we have our office (Maryland) and in regions where our 
projects  and  other  investments  are  located  or  where  they  are 
managed, have implemented various restrictions, rules, or guidelines 
including quarantines, restrictions on travel, “shelter in place”, “stay at 
home”, or “safer at home” rules, restrictions on types of business that 
may continue to operate, and/or restrictions on types of construction 
projects allowed. While some of these restrictions have been relaxed 
or phased out, many of these or similar restrictions remain in place, 
continue to be implemented, or additional restrictions are being 
considered. Although, in certain cases, exceptions may be available 
for  certain  essential  operations  and  businesses  which  generally 
include the renewable energy projects in which we invest, there is 
no assurance that such exceptions will enable us to avoid adverse 
effects to our results of operations and business. Further, such actions 
create disruption in energy efficiency, renewable energy, real estate 
and other sustainable infrastructure markets and adversely impact a 
number of industries.

We closed our office and moved to a remote workforce in early March 
to help ensure the safety and productivity of our employees and help 
prevent the spread of COVID-19 among our workforce and in the 
community. We took this action early as we recognized the seriousness 
of the situation and wanted to protect our employees and the members 
of the communities in which they live and work. We have spent 
significant time and resources over the last several years to update 
our IT infrastructure and our use of the cloud to allow us to take this 
action. Operating as a remote workforce has not materially impacted 

our ability to carry out day to day operations. We have announced 
donations totaling $375,000 to several Maryland charities who 
are providing services during the pandemic as well as to charities 
addressing racial inequity.

We have taken certain actions to increase liquidity, including issuing 
approximately $300 million in common stock and issuing over $900 
million of senior unsecured and convertible senior notes. We believe these 
actions give us ample liquidity to continue to operate our business and 
make investments in green projects as opportunities present themselves. 
See the Notes 7 and 8 to our financial statements and Liquidity and 
Capital Resources in this Form 10-K for further discussion of our liquidity.

Our financial results for 2020 have not been adversely impacted 
by COVID-19 to a material degree. We currently have no material 
loan delinquencies. We believe that the cost-savings attributes of the 
projects in which we invest provide incentive to borrowers and other 
obligors to continue to make their contractual payments.

The rapid development and fluidity of the circumstances resulting from 
this pandemic preclude any prediction as to the ultimate adverse impact 
of COVID-19. Nevertheless, COVID-19 and the current financial, 
economic and capital markets environment, and future developments 
in these and other areas present material uncertainty and risk with 
respect to our performance, financial condition, volume of business, 
results of operations and cash flows. We expect to review and adjust 
our efforts as the circumstances and impacts of the pandemic develop 
and respond to the shifting business and financial landscape and 
heightened volatility in, among other things, financial markets as well 
as the general economy and the various federal, state and local 
guidelines on business operations. See the Risk Factors section of 
this Form 10-K for additional discuss of certain potential risks to our 
business arising from COVID-19.

Critical Accounting Policies and Use of Estimates
Our financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP, 
which requires the use of estimates and assumptions that involve the 
exercise of judgment and use of assumptions as to future uncertainties. 
The following discussion addresses the accounting policies that we 
use including areas that involve the use of significant estimates. Our 
most critical accounting policies involve decisions and assessments 
that could affect our reported assets and liabilities, as well as our 
reported revenues and expenses. We believe that all of the decisions 
and assessments upon which our financial statements are based are 
reasonable at the time made and based upon information available 
to us at that time. Our critical accounting policies and accounting 
estimates may be expanded over time. Those material accounting 
policies and estimates that we expect to be most critical to an investor’s 
understanding of our financial results and condition and require 
complex management judgment are discussed below. See Note 2 of 
the audited financial statements in this Form 10-K for further details on 
our accounting policies.

We evaluate our critical accounting estimates and judgments on an 
ongoing basis and update them, as necessary, based on changing 
conditions. Additionally, there were certain newly issued accounting 
pronouncements that may be relevant to our business. See Note 2 of 
the audited financial statements in this Form 10-K for further details on 
these newly issued accounting pronouncements.

5 0  |   

We have identified the following accounting policies as critical 
because they require significant judgments and assumptions about 
highly  complex  and  inherently  uncertain  matters  and  the  use  of 
reasonably different estimates and assumptions could have a material 
impact on our reported results of operations or financial condition. 

Consolidation 

We account for our investment in entities that are considered voting or 
variable interest entities under ASC 810, Consolidation. We perform 
an ongoing assessment and make judgments to determine the primary 
beneficiary of each entity as required by ASC 810, which includes an 
assessment of the type of control we have over the entity. If we would 
conclude that certain of these entities should be consolidated, we 
would include the entities assets, liabilities and related activity in our 
financial statements. Refer to discussion below relating to consolidation 
considerations for the securitization of receivables. We further discuss 
our process for evaluating these judgments in Note 2 of the audited 
financial statements of this Form 10-K.

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

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Equity Method Investments

For our non-consolidated equity investments, we generally determine 
our income allocations under the equity method of accounting based 
on the change in our claim on net assets of the investee entity using 
a method commonly referred to as the hypothetical liquidation at 
book value method or (“HLBV”). This method uses a hypothetical 
liquidation scenario that may require judgment in its application and 
could have a material impact on our reported financial results. Any 
changes in this method of application or in certain assumptions could 
either increase or decrease our net income. We further discuss our 
process for applying this method of income allocations in Note 2 of 
the audited financial statements of this Form 10-K.

Impairment of our Portfolio

We evaluate the various assets in our Portfolio on at least a quarterly 
basis, and more frequently when economic or other conditions warrant 
such an evaluation, for potential delinquencies or other events that 
may indicate a potential impairment of the such asset. If an asset 
is determined to be impaired, any impairment charges would be 
recorded in the income statement and reduce our net income. We 
further discuss our process for evaluating these judgments in Note 2 
of the audited financial statements in this Form 10-K. 

In  June  2016,  the  FASB  issued  ASU  No.  2016-13,  Financial 
Instruments-Credit Losses-Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial 
Instruments (“Topic 326”). Topic 326 significantly changes how 
entities will recognize and measure credit losses and impairments 
for most financial assets and certain other instruments that are not 
measured at fair value through net income. Topic 326 replaces the 
“incurred loss” approach under existing guidance with an “expected 
loss” model for instruments measured at amortized cost and require 
entities to record allowances for expected losses from available-for-sale

Results of Operations
For a comparison of our results of operations for the fiscal years ended 
December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, see “Part II, Item 7. 
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and 
Results of Operations” of our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal 
year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on February 
25, 2020. 

We make investments in climate solutions by providing capital to 
the leading companies in the energy efficiency, renewable energy 
and other sustainable infrastructure markets. We believe that Hannon 
Armstrong is one of the first U.S. public companies solely dedicated 
to such climate investments. Our goal is to generate attractive returns 
for our shareholders by investing in a diversified portfolio of assets and 
projects that reduce carbon emissions or increase resilience to climate 
change and generate long-term, recurring and predictable cash flows 
or cost savings from proven commercial technologies.

We completed approximately $1.9 billion of transactions during 
2020, compared to approximately $1.3 billion during 2019. Our 
strategy includes holding a large portion of these transactions on 
our balance sheet. We refer to the transactions we hold on our 
balance sheet as of a given date as our “Portfolio.” Our Portfolio was 
approximately $2.9 billion as of December 31, 2020 and $2.1 
billion December 31, 2019.

debt securities rather than reduce the amortized cost, as currently 
required. The expected loss model inherently requires more judgment 
than the incurred loss model, as management’s expectations of the 
creditworthiness of our borrowers as well as macroeconomic factors 
such as power prices and unemployment rates can impact the provision 
for receivables we record. Topic 326 also simplifies the accounting 
model for purchased credit-impaired debt securities and loans. Topic 
326 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019 
and was adopted through a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained 
earnings as of the beginning of the first reporting period in which the 
guidance is effective. The Company has adopted the new standard 
as of January 1, 2020. We further discuss our process for applying 
this accounting standard in Note 2 of the audited financial statements 
of this Form 10-K.

Securitization of Financial Assets

We have established various special purpose entities or securitization 
trusts for the purpose of securitizing certain receivables or other debt 
investments. We make judgments, based in part, on supporting legal 
opinions, on whether these entities should be consolidated as a 
variable interest entity, as defined in ASC 810, Consolidation, and 
whether the transfers to these entities are accounted for as a sale of 
a financial asset or a secured borrowing under ASC 860, Transfers 
and Servicing. If we would conclude that certain of these special 
purpose entities or securitization trusts should be consolidated, we 
would include the assets and liabilities of the entity and their related 
activity in our financial statements. If sale accounting is not met in 
these transactions it would be treated as a secured borrowing rather 
than a sale in our financial statements. We further discuss our process 
for evaluating these judgments in Note 2 of the audited financial 
statements of this Form 10-K.

Portfolio

Our Portfolio totaled approximately $2.9 billion as of December 31, 
2020, and included approximately $1.4 billion of BTM assets and 
approximately $1.5 billion of GC assets. Approximately 44% consisted 
of  fixed-rate  government  and  commercial  receivables  and  debt 
securities, which are classified as investments, on our balance sheet. 
Approximately 43% of our Portfolio consisted of unconsolidated equity 
investments in renewable energy related projects and approximately 
13% of our Portfolio was real estate leased to renewable energy 
projects under lease agreements. Our Portfolio consisted of over 230 
transactions with an average size of $12 million and the weighted 
average  remaining  life  of  our  Portfolio  (excluding  match-funded 
transactions) of approximately 17 years as of December 31, 2020.

Our Portfolio included the following as of December 31, 2020:

zz Equity  investments  in  either  preferred  or  common  structures  in 

unconsolidated entities;

zz Government  and  commercial  receivables,  such  as  loans  for 

renewable energy and energy efficiency projects;

zz Real estate, such as land or other assets leased for use by sustainable 

infrastructure projects typically under long-term leases; and

zz Investments  in  debt  securities  of  renewable  energy  or  energy 

efficiency projects.

|  5 1

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

The table below provides details on the interest rate and maturity of our receivables and debt securities as of December 31, 2020: 

(in millions)

Fixed-rate receivables, interest rates less than 5.00% per annum

$

Fixed-rate receivables, interest rates from 5.00% to 6.50% per annum

Fixed-rate receivables, interest rates greater than 6.50% per annum

Receivables

Less: Allowance for loss on receivables

Receivables, net of allowance

Fixed-rate investments, interest rates less than 5.00% per annum

Fixed-rate investments, interest rates from 5.00% to 6.50% per annum

Balance

Maturity

240

128 

882 

1,250 

(36)

1,214 

43 

12 

2021 to 2048

2022 to 2058

2021 to 2069

2035 to 2038

2030 to 2051

TOTAL RECEIVABLES AND INVESTMENTS

$

1,269 

The table below presents, for the debt investments and real estate related holdings of our Portfolio and our interest-bearing liabilities inclusive of 
our credit facilities, the average outstanding balances, income earned, the interest expense incurred, and average yield or cost. Our earnings 
from our equity method investments are not included in this table. 

(dollars in millions)

Portfolio, excluding equity method investments

Interest income, receivables

Average balance of receivables

Average interest rate of receivables

Interest income, investments

Average balance of investments

Average interest rate of investments

Rental income

Average balance of real estate

Average yield on real estate

Average balance of receivables, investments, and real estate

Average yield from receivables, investments, and real estate

Debt

Interest expense

Average balance of debt

Average cost of debt

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

92

$

68  $

1,165 

7.9 %

2

58 

4.2 %

26 

361 

7.2 %

1,584 

7.6 %

92 

1,797 

5.1 %

930 

7.3 %

6 

148 

4.3 %

26 

364 

7.1 %

1,442 

6.9 %

64 

1,307 

4.9 %

68 

1,001 

6.8 %

7 

163 

4.1 %

25 

350 

7.0 %

1,514 

6.5 %

77 

1,544 

5.0 %

The following table provides a summary of our anticipated principal repayments for our receivables and investments as of December 31, 2020:

(in millions)

Payment due by Period

Total

Less than
1 year

1-5 years

5-10 years

More than
10 years

Receivables (excluding allowance)

$

1,250  $

106  $

200 $

Investments

55

5

3

387 $

14

557

33

5 2  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

See Note 6 of our audited financial statements in this Form 10-K for 
information on:

zz the Performance Ratings of our Portfolio, and

zz the receivables on non-accrual status.

zz the anticipated maturity dates of our receivables and investments 
and the weighted average yield for each range of maturities as of 
December 31, 2020,

zz the term of our leases and a schedule of our future minimum rental 
income under our land lease agreements as of December 31, 2020,

For information on our residual assets relating to our securitization 
trusts, see Note 5 of our audited financial statements in this Form 
10-K. The residual assets do not have a contractual maturity date 
and the underlying securitized assets have contractual maturity dates 
until 2056.

Comparison of the Year Ended December 31, 2020 to the Year Ended December 31, 2019 

(dollars in millions)

Revenue

Interest income

Rental income

Gain on sale of receivables and investments

Fee income

Total revenue

Expenses

Interest expense

Provision for loss on receivables

Compensation and benefits

General and administrative

Total expenses

Income before equity method investments

Income (loss) from equity method investments

Income (loss) before income taxes

Income tax benefit (expense)

NET INCOME (LOSS)

Years ended December 31,

2020

2019

$ Change

% Change

$

96 $

76  $

26 

50 

15 

187 

92 

10 

38 

15 

155 

32 

48 

80 

3 

26 

24 

16 

142 

64 

8 

29 

15 

116 

26 

64 

90 

(8)

$

83 $

82 $

20

— 

26 

(1)

45 

28 

2 

9 

— 

39 

6 

(16)

(10)

11 

1

26%

— %

108 %

(6)%

32 %

44 %

25 %

31 %

— %

34 %

23 %

(25)%

(11)%

(138)%

1 %

zz Net income increased by approximately $1 million as a result of a 
$45 million increase in total revenue, a $39 million increase in total 
expenses, a $16 million decrease in income from equity method 
investments, and a $11 million increase in income tax benefit 
(expense). These results do not include the Non-GAAP earnings 
adjustment related to equity method investments, which is discussed 
in the Non-GAAP Financial Measures section.

zz Interest and rental income increased by $20 million due to the 
addition of higher yielding assets to an overall larger portfolio.

zz Gain on sale and fee income increased by $25 million primarily 

due to a change in the mix of assets being securitized.

zz Interest expense for the year increased by approximately $28 million 
primarily as a result of higher outstanding balances of debt during 
the year.

zz Provision for loss on receivables was $10 million primarily as a result 
of provisions based on new loans and loan commitments made 
during the year required by the new credit loss standard. The prior 
period provision of $8 million, recorded under the previous incurred 
loss model, was due to a 2019 court ruling related to receivables 
that were previously placed on non-accrual status in 2017.

zz Compensation and benefits increased by $9 million as a result of an 
increase in our employee headcount and incentive compensation.

zz Income from equity method investments decreased by $16 million, 
primarily due to the GAAP gain of $28 million recognized from the 
sale of a portfolio of wind projects in 2019 which did not recur in 
the current year, partially offset by additional income resulting from 
the realization of tax attributes by our co-investors.

zz Income tax benefit (expense) increased by $11 million as a result 
of higher taxable income in 2019 largely due to the gain on the 
sale of the portfolio of wind projects discussed above which did 
not recur in the current year.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

We consider the following Non-GAAP financial measures useful 
to  investors  as  key  supplemental  measures  of  our  performance: 
(1) distributable earnings, (2) managed assets, and (3) distributable 
net investment income. These non-GAAP financial measures should be 
considered along with, but not as alternatives to, net income or loss as 
measures of our operating performance. These Non-GAAP financial 
measures, as calculated by us, may not be comparable to similarly 
named financial measures as reported by other companies that do 
not define such terms exactly as we define such terms. 

|  5 3

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

Distributable Earnings 

We are changing the name of our primary Non-GAAP earnings 
metric  from  Core  (Pre-CECL)  earnings  to  distributable  earnings 
with no change in the historical method of calculation. We will no 
longer be reporting a Core earnings metric which includes the CECL 
provision. We calculate distributable earnings as GAAP net income 
(loss) excluding non-cash equity compensation expense, provisions for 
loss on receivables, amortization of intangibles, non-cash provision 
(benefit) for taxes, any one-time acquisition related costs or non-cash tax 
charges and the earnings attributable to our non-controlling interest of 
our Operating Partnership. We also make an adjustment to our equity 
method investments in the renewable energy projects as described 
below. Judgment will be utilized in determining when we will reflect 
the losses on receivables in our distributable earnings. In making this 
determination, we will consider certain circumstances such as, the time 
period in default, sufficiency of collateral as well as the outcomes of any 
related litigation. In the future, distributable earnings may also exclude 
one-time events pursuant to changes in GAAP and certain other non-
cash charges as approved by a majority of our independent directors. 

We believe a Non-GAAP measure, such as distributable earnings, that 
adjusts for the items discussed above is and has been a meaningful 
indicator of our economic performance and is useful to our investors 
as well as management in evaluating our performance as it relates to 
expected dividend payments over time. As a REIT, we are required 
to distribute substantially all of our taxable income to investors in the 
form of dividends and is a principal focus of our investors. Additionally, 
we believe that our investors also use distributable earnings, or a 
comparable supplemental performance measure, to evaluate and 
compare our performance to that of our peers, and as such, we believe 
that the disclosure of distributable earnings is useful to our investors.

Certain of our equity method investments in renewable energy and 
energy efficiency projects are structured using typical partnership 
“flip” structures where the investors with cash distribution preferences 
receive a pre-negotiated return consisting of priority distributions from 
the project cash flows, in many cases, along with tax attributes. Once 
this preferred return is achieved, the partnership “flips” and the common 
equity investor, often the operator or sponsor of the project, receives 
more of the cash flows through its equity interests while the previously 
preferred investors retain an ongoing residual interest. We have made 
investments in both the preferred and common equity of these structures. 

Regardless of the nature of our equity interest, we typically negotiate the 
purchase prices of our equity investments, which have a finite expected 
life, based on our assessment of the expected cash flows we will receive 
from these projects discounted back to the net present value, based on 
a target investment rate, with the expected cash flows to be received in 
the future reflecting both a return on the capital (at the investment rate) 
and a return of the capital we have committed to the project. We use 
a similar approach in the underwriting of our receivables.

Under GAAP, we account for these equity method investments utilizing the 
HLBV method. Under this method, we recognize income or loss based on 
the change in the amount each partner would receive, typically based on 
the negotiated profit and loss allocation, if the assets were liquidated at 
book value, after adjusting for any distributions or contributions made during 
such quarter. The HLBV allocations of income or loss may be impacted by 
the receipt of tax attributes, as tax equity investors are allocated losses in 
proportion to the tax benefits received, while the sponsors of the project 
are allocated gains of a similar amount. In addition, the agreed upon 
allocations of the project’s cash flows may differ materially from the profit 
and loss allocation used for the HLBV calculations.

The cash distributions for those equity method investments where we 
apply HLBV are segregated into a return on and return of capital on 
our cash flow statement based on the cumulative income (loss) that has 
been allocated using the HLBV method. However, as a result of the 
application of the HLBV method, including the impact of tax allocations, 
the high levels of depreciation and other non-cash expenses that are 
common to renewable energy projects and the differences between 
the agreed upon profit and loss and the cash flow allocations, the 
distributions and thus the economic returns (i.e. return on capital) 
achieved from the investment are often significantly different from the 
income or loss that is allocated to us under the HLBV method. Thus, in 
calculating distributable earnings, for certain of these investments where 
there are characteristics as described above, we further adjust GAAP 
net income (loss) to take into account our calculation of the return on 
capital (based upon the investment rate) from our renewable energy 
equity method investments, as adjusted to reflect the performance of 
the project and the cash distributed. We believe this equity method 
investment adjustment to our GAAP net income (loss) in calculating 
our distributable earnings measure is an important supplement to the 
HLBV income allocations determined under GAAP for an investor to 
understand the economic performance of these investments where 
HLBV income can differ substantially from the economic returns.

The following table provides results related to our equity method investments for the last three years: 

(dollars in millions)

Income under GAAP

Distributable earnings

Return of capital

CASH COLLECTED

For the years ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

$

$

48

$

55 

$

102

157

$

64

41

60

101

$

$

$

22

41

74

115

Distributable earnings does not represent cash generated from operating 
activities in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered as 
an alternative to net income (determined in accordance with GAAP), or 
an indication of our cash flow from operating activities (determined in 
accordance with GAAP), or a measure of our liquidity, or an indication of 
funds available to fund our cash needs, including our ability to make cash 

distributions. In addition, our methodology for calculating distributable 
earnings  may  differ  from  the  methodologies  employed  by  other 
companies to calculate the same or similar supplemental performance 
measures, and accordingly, our reported distributable earnings may not 
be comparable to similar metrics reported by other companies.

5 4  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

We have calculated our distributable earnings for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018. The table below provides a 
reconciliation of our GAAP net income to distributable earnings:

(dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)

$

Per Share

$

Per Share

$

Per Share

For the Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

Net income attributable to controlling 
stockholders(1)

Distributable earnings adjustments

Reverse GAAP income from equity method 
investments

Add equity method investments earnings 
adjustment

Non-cash equity-based compensation charges

Non-cash provision for loss on receivables 

Amortization of intangibles

Non-cash provision (benefit) for taxes

Current year earnings attributable to non-
controlling interest

$

82,416  $

1.10  $

81,564  $

1.24  $

41,577  $

0.75 

(47,963)

(64,174)

(22,162)

55,305 

16,791 

10,096 

3,291 

(2,779)

343 

41,437 

14,160 

8,027 

3,285 

8,091 

356 

40,923 

10,066 

— 

3,207 

1,968 

221 

DISTRIBUTABLE EARNINGS(2)

$

117,500 $

1.55 $

92,746 $

1.40 $

75,800

$

1.38

(1)  This is the GAAP diluted earnings per share and is the most comparable GAAP measure to our distributable earnings per share. 
(2)  Distributable earnings per share are based on 75,588,286 shares, 66,046,401 shares and 54,742,869 shares for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 
2018, respectively, which represents the weighted average number of fully-diluted shares outstanding including our restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, long-
term  incentive  plan  units  and  the  non-controlling  interest  in  our  Operating  Partnership. We  include  any  potential  common  stock  issuance  in  this  calculation  related  to 
our convertible notes using the treasury stock method and any potential common stock issuances related to share based compensation units in the amount we believe 
is reasonably certain to vest. We believe the use of the treasury stock method is an appropriate representation of the potential dilution when considering the economic 
behaviors of the holders of the instrument. 

Managed Assets

As we both consolidate assets on our balance sheet and securitize assets, certain of our receivables and other assets are not reflected on our 
balance sheet where we may have a residual interest in the performance of the investment, such as servicing rights or a retained interest in cash 
flows. Thus, we present our investments on a non-GAAP “managed” basis, which assumes that securitized receivables are not sold. We believe 
that our Managed Asset information is useful to investors because it portrays the amount of both on- and off-balance sheet receivables that we 
manage, which enables investors to understand and evaluate the credit performance associated with our portfolio of receivables, investments, 
and residual assets in securitized receivables. Our non-GAAP Managed Assets measure may not be comparable to similarly titled measures 
used by other companies.

The following is a reconciliation of our GAAP Portfolio to our Managed Assets as of December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018:

(dollars in millions)

Equity method investments

Government receivables

Commercial receivables

Real estate

Investments

Assets held in securitization trusts

MANAGED ASSETS

Credit losses as a percentage of assets under management(1)

0.0 %

(1)  Represents those credit losses that are are considered in determining distributable earnings. 

As of and for the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

1,280

$

499  $

248 

965 

359 

55 

4,308 

$

7,215 

$

263 

896 

362 

75 

4,101 

6,196  $

0.1%

471

497 

447 

365 

170 

3,334 

5,284 

0.0%

|  5 5

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

Distributable Net Investment Income 

We have a portfolio of investments in climate solutions which we finance using a combination of debt and equity. We calculate distributable net 
investment income by adjusting GAAP-based net investment income for those earnings adjustments related to our distributable earnings which 
impact net investment income. We believe that this measure is useful to investors as it shows the recurring income generated by our portfolio 
after the associated interest cost of debt financing. Our management also uses distributable net investment income in this way. Our non-GAAP 
distributable net investment income measure may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies. Also refer to discussion 
above related to Distributable Earnings.

The following is a reconciliation of our GAAP-based net investment income to our distributable net investment income:

(in thousands)

Interest income

Rental income

GAAP-based investment revenue

Interest expense

GAAP-based net investment income

Equity method earnings adjustment

Amortization of real estate intangibles

Distributable net investment income

Other Measures

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

95,559 $

25,878 

76,200 $

25,884 

75,935 

24,606 

121,437 $

102,084 $

100,541 

92,182 

29,255 $

55,305 

3,089 

64,241 

37,843 $

41,437 

3,082 

87,649 $

82,362 $

76,874 

23,667 

40,923 

3,003 

67,593 

$

$

$

$

The following are certain other financial measures for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018:

Return on assets – GAAP basis

Return on equity – GAAP basis

Average equity to average total assets ratio – GAAP basis

Portfolio Yield 
We calculate portfolio yield as the weighted average underwritten 
yield of the investments in our Portfolio as of the end of the period. 
Underwritten yield is the rate at which we discount the expected cash 
flows from the assets in our Portfolio to determine our purchase price. In 
calculating underwritten yield, we make certain assumptions, including 
the timing and amounts of cash flows generated by our investments, 
which may differ from actual results, and we may update this yield to 
reflect our most current estimates of project performance. We believe 
that portfolio yield provides an additional metric to understand certain 
characteristics of our Portfolio as of a point in time. Our management 
uses portfolio yield this way and we believe that our investors use it 
in a similar fashion to evaluate certain characteristics of our Portfolio 
compared to our peers, and as such, we believe that the disclosure 
of portfolio yield is useful to our investors.

Our Portfolio totaled approximately $2.9 billion as of December 31, 
2020. Unlevered portfolio yield was 7.6% as of both December 31, 
2020  and  2019.  See  Note  6  to  our  financial  statements  and 
MD&A - Our Business in this Form 10-K for additional discussion of 
the characteristics of our portfolio as of December 31, 2020.

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

2.8 %

7.7 %

36.8 %

3.6 %

9.4 %

38.4 %

1.9 %

5.7 %

32.9 %

Environmental Metrics 
As discussed in Item 1. Business, as part of our investment process, 
we calculate the estimated metric tons of CO2 equivalent emissions, 
or carbon emissions avoided by our investments. In this calculation 
which we refer to as CarbonCount®, we apply emissions factor data 
from the U.S. Government or the International Energy Administration 
to an estimate of a project’s energy production or savings to compute 
an estimate of metric tons of carbon emissions avoided. We estimate 
that our investments originated in 2020 will reduce annual carbon 
emissions by approximately 2.0 million metric tons.

In assessing our performance and results of operations, we also consider 
the impact of our operations on the environment. We utilize the carbon 
emissions categorizations established by the World Resources Institute 
Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Standards (“Standards”) to set goals 
and calculate our estimated emissions. The categorizations are as follows:

zz Scope  1  GHG  emissions  –  Direct  emissions  –  Emissions  from 
operations that are owned or controlled by the reporting company. 

zz Scope 2 GHG emissions – Indirect emissions – Emissions from the 
generation of purchased or acquired energy such as electricity, 
steam, heating or cooling, consumed by the reporting company. 

zz Scope 3 GHG emissions – Indirect emissions – All other indirect 
emissions that occur in the value chain of the reporting company, 
including both upstream and downstream emissions. 

5 6  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

The table below illustrates our goals and performance for 2020 in metric tons (“MT”). 

Category

Scope 1 GHG emissions

Scope 2 GHG emissions

Scope 3 GHG emissions

Goal 

0 MT

0 MT

 0 MT2

Performance

0 MT

0 MT1

< 200 MT2

(1)  Performance stated is market-based. 
(2)  Our stated actual performance for Scope 3 GHG emissions does not include the carbon emissions or the emissions reductions as a result of our investments. The first year 

carbon emissions reductions as a result of our investments originated in 2020 are 2.0 million MT. 

Human Capital Metrics 
As part of our broader human capital strategy, we monitor and 
disclose certain metrics which help us understand our workforce and 
our progress in fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. 
As of December 31, 2020, we employed 73 people full-time, one 
person part-time, and five people as independent contractors. As 
a growing company, the average tenure of our employees as of 
December 31, 2020, was approximately 5 years, and more than 
47% of our employees had been employed by us for more than 
4 years. For the year ending December 31, 2020, we had no 
retirements or resignations related to ill health. 

As discussed in Item 1. Business - Human Capital and Social Strategy, 
we are undertaking studies and are focused on continuing to increase 
the diversity of our workforce at all levels of our organization and are 
in the process of developing goals to enhance diversity and inclusion. 
These metrics are and will continue to be actively managed and will be 
reported along with the results of the studies to our executive leadership 
as well as our board of directors. 

Metrics surrounding the diversity and inclusion of our workforce are 
shown below: 

Percentage of various levels of the workforce who identify as male or female

WORKFORCE

40%
Female-
Identifying

60%
Male-
Identifying

MANAGERIAL
ROLES

41%
Female-
Identifying

59%
Male-
Identifying

17%
Female-
Identifying

LEADERSHIP
TEAM

83%
Male-
Identifying

29%
Female-
Identifying

BOARD OF
DIRECTORS

71%
Male-
Identifying

|  5 7

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

Percentage of various levels of the workforce who identify as racial- or ethnic-minorities

25%
Minority

WORKFORCE

75%
Non-Minority

12%
Minority

MANAGERIAL
ROLES

88%
Non-Minority

LEADERSHIP
TEAM

BOARD OF
DIRECTORS

100%
Non-Minority

100%
Non-Minority

In addition to diversity of gender and ethnic background, we also 
value diversity of thought, with 58% of our leadership team and 57% 
of our board of directors possessing degrees outside the fields of 

business or economics, including in science and engineering, liberal 
and fine arts, and law. 

Liquidity and Capital Resources
Liquidity is a measure of our ability to meet potential short term 
(within  one  year)  and  long  term  cash  requirements,  including 
ongoing commitments to repay borrowings, fund and maintain our 
current and future assets, make distributions to our stockholders and 
other general business needs. We will use significant cash to make 
investments in sustainable infrastructure, repay principal and interest 
on our borrowings, make distributions to our stockholders and fund 
our operations. We use borrowings as part of our financing strategy 
to increase potential returns to our stockholders and have available to 
us a broad range of financing sources. We finance our investments 
primarily with non-recourse or recourse debt, equity and off-balance 
sheet securitization structures.

We believe we have substantial liquidity as of December 31, 2020, 
with unrestricted cash balances of $286 million compared to $6 million 
as of December 31, 2019. We have been able to successfully access 
the equity markets, raising approximately $300 million under our 
“at-the-market” equity distribution program (our “ATM program”) during 
the twelve months ended December 31, 2020. During 2020, we have 
issued $775 million principal amount of senior unsecured notes and 
$144 million of convertible notes. 

We have two senior secured revolving credit facilities (“Rep-Based 
Facility” and “Approval-Based Facility”) with several lenders with a 
combined maximum commitment of $450 million. For additional 
information  on  our  credit  facilities,  see  Note  7  to  our  audited 
financial statements on this Form 10-K. As of December 31, 2020, 
we had approximately $605 million of non-recourse borrowings. 
We have approximately $1.3 billion of senior unsecured notes and 
$294 million of convertible notes outstanding. We also continue to 
utilize off-balance sheet securitization transactions, where we transfer 
the loans or other assets we originate to securitization trusts or other 
bankruptcy remote special purpose funding vehicles that are not 
consolidated on our balance sheet. We have continued to complete 
off-balance sheet securitization transactions with large institutional 
investors such as life insurance companies throughout 2020. As of 
December 31, 2020, the outstanding principal balance of our assets 
financed through the use of these off-balance sheet transactions was 
approximately $4.3 billion.

5 8  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

In addition to general operational obligations which are typically 
paid as incurred and dividends, which are declared by our board of 
directors quarterly, our future cash needs include the non-amortizing 
balances of our senior unsecured debt and the balances of our credit 
facilities. Cash maturities related to these obligations are shown below: 

Cash Maturities of Outstanding Debt

$600

$500

$400

$300

$200

$100

$—

2021

2022

2023 2024

2025

2026 2027

2028

2029

2030

Senior Unsecured Notes     Credit Facility

The above cash maturities do not include our non-recourse debt, given 
that to the extent there are not sufficient cash flows received from 
those investments pledged as collateral, the investor has no recourse 
against other corporate assets to recover any shortfalls and corporate 
cash contributions would not be required. The above also does not 
include convertible debt maturities, as it is possible those obligations 
will be settled with the issuance of shares. For further information 
on non-recourse debt and our convertible notes, see Note 8 to our 
financial statements. 

Large institutional investors have provided the financing for our on and 
off-balance sheet financings. We have worked to expand our liquidity 
and access to the debt and bank loan markets. For further information 
on the credit facilities, senior unsecured notes, asset backed non-
recourse debt, convertible notes, and securitizations, see Notes 5, 7 
and 8 to our audited financial statements of this Form 10-K.

We plan to raise additional equity capital and continue to use fixed 
and floating rate borrowings which may be in the form of additional 
bank credit facilities (including term loans and revolving facilities), 
warehouse facilities, repurchase agreements, and public and private 
debt issuances as a means of financing our business. We also expect 
to use both on-balance sheet and off-balance sheet securitizations. 
We may also consider the use of separately funded special purpose 
entities or funds to allow us to expand the investments that we make 
or to manage the Portfolio diversification.

The decision on how we finance specific assets or groups of assets 
is largely driven by risk and portfolio and financial management 
considerations, including the potential for gain on sale or fee income, 
as well as the overall interest rate environment, prevailing credit 
spreads and the terms of available financing and market conditions. 
During periods of market disruptions, certain sources of financing may 
be more readily accessible than others which may impact our financing 
decisions. Over time, as market conditions change, we may use other 
forms of debt and equity in addition to these financing arrangements.

The amount of financial leverage we may deploy for particular assets 
will depend upon the availability of particular types of financing and 
our assessment of the credit, liquidity, price volatility and other risks 
of those assets, the interest rate environment and the credit quality of 
our financing counterparties. As shown in the table below, our debt to 
equity ratio was approximately 1.8 to 1 as of December 31, 2020, 
which is below our current board-approved leverage limit of up to 2.5 
to 1. Our percentage of fixed rate debt was approximately 99% as 
of December 31, 2020, which is within our targeted fixed rate debt 
percentage range of 75% to 100%. 

The calculation of our fixed-rate debt and financial leverage as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 is shown in the chart below:

(dollars in millions)

Floating-rate borrowings

Fixed-rate debt

TOTAL DEBT(1)

Equity

Leverage

December 31, 2020

% of Total

December 31, 2019

% of Total

$

$

$

23

2,166 

2,189 

1,210 

1.8 to 1

1%

$

99 %

100 % $

$

33 

1,360 

1,393 

940 

1.5 to 1

2%

98 %

100 %

(1)  Floating-rate borrowings include borrowings under our floating-rate credit facilities and approximately $2 million of non-recourse debt with floating rate exposure as of 
December 31, 2019. Fixed-rate debt also includes the present notional value of non-recourse debt that is hedged using interest rate swaps. Debt excludes securitizations 
that are not consolidated on our balance sheet.

We  intend  to  use  financial  leverage  for  the  primary  purpose  of 
financing our Portfolio and business activities and not for the purpose 
of speculating on changes in interest rates. While we may temporarily 
exceed the leverage limit, if our board of directors approves a material 
change to this limit, we anticipate advising our stockholders of this 
change through disclosure in our periodic reports and other filings 
under the Exchange Act.

While we generally intend to hold our target assets that we do not 
securitize upon acquisition as long term investments, certain of our 
investments may be sold in order to manage our interest rate risk and 
liquidity needs, to meet other operating objectives and to adapt to 
market conditions. The timing and impact of future sales of receivables 
and investments, if any, cannot be predicted with any certainty. 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

PA R T   I I

We believe these identified sources of liquidity in addition to our cash 
on hand will be adequate for purposes of meeting our short-term and 
long-term liquidity needs, which include funding future investments, 
debt service, operating costs and distributions to our stockholders. 
To qualify as a REIT, we must distribute annually at least 90% of our 
REIT’s taxable income without regard to the deduction for dividends 
paid and excluding net capital gains. These dividend requirements 
limit our ability to retain earnings and thereby replenish or increase 
capital for growth and our operations.

Sources and Uses of Cash

We had approximately $310 million and $107 million unrestricted 
cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash as of December 31, 2020 
and 2019, respectively.

Cash Flows Relating to Operating Activities

Net  cash  provided  by  operating  activities  was  approximately 
$73 million for the year ended December 31, 2020, driven primarily 
by net income of $83 million, less adjustments for non-cash and 
other  items  of  $10  million.  The  non-cash  and  other  adjustments 
consisted of increases of $3 million of depreciation and amortization, 
$8 million for amortization of finance costs, $17 million related to 
equity-based compensation, $13 million for equity method investments, 
$8  million  related  to  accounts  payable  and  accrued  expenses, 
$14 million for gain on sale of receivables and investments, and 
$10 million for provision for loss on receivables. These increases 
were offset by $56 million related to non-cash gains on securitizations 
and $27 million related to other items.

Net  cash  provided  by  operating  activities  was  approximately 
$29 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, driven primarily 
by net income of $82 million, less adjustments for non-cash and other 
items of $53 million. The non-cash and other adjustments consisted of 
increases of $4 million of depreciation and amortization, $6 million 
for amortization of financing costs, $14 million related to equity-based 
compensation, $5 million related to accounts payable and accrued 
expenses, $13 million for gain on sale of receivables and investments, 
and $8 million for provision for loss on receivables. These increases 
were offset by $56 million related to non-cash gains on securitizations, 
$34 million related to equity method investments, and $13 million 
related to other items.

Cash Flows Relating to Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities was approximately $831 million 
for the year ended December 31, 2020. We made equity method 
investments of $886 million, investments in receivables and fixed 

rate debt securities of $296 million, and funded escrow accounts of 
$23 million. These were offset by collected payments of $135 million 
from receivables and fixed rate debt securities and the receipt of 
$128 million from the sale of financial assets. We also collected 
$99 million from equity method investments which are considered 
return of capital determined under GAAP, withdrew $8 million from 
escrow accounts, and had other cash inflows of $3 million. 

Net cash used in investing activities was approximately $201 million 
for the year ended December 31, 2019. We collected payments 
of $64 million from receivables and fixed rate debt securities and 
received $274 million from the sale of financial assets. We also 
collected $71 million from equity method investments which are 
considered  return  of  capital  determined  under  GAAP,  received 
$81 million from the sale of equity method investments, withdrew 
$31 million from escrow accounts, and had other cash inflows of 
$2 million. These were offset by investments in receivables and fixed 
rate debt securities of $543 million, equity method investments of 
$152 million, and funding of escrow accounts of $29 million.

Cash Flows Relating to Financing Activities

Net  cash  provided  by  financing  activities  was  approximately 
$962 million for the year ended December 31, 2020. We received 
proceeds from the issuance of senior unsecured debt of $771 million, 
net proceeds from common stock issuances of $298 million, proceeds 
from the issuance of convertible notes of $144 million, proceeds from 
credit facilities of $126 million, and proceeds from non-recourse debt 
of $16 million. These were partially offset by principal payments on 
credit facilities of $134 million, principal payments on non-recourse 
debt  of  $126  million,  payments  of  $17  million  for  withholding 
requirements as a result of the vesting of employee shares, and 
payments of dividends, distributions, and other financing activities 
of $116 million. 

Net  cash  provided  by  financing  activities  was  approximately 
$219 million for the year ended December 31, 2019. We received 
proceeds from credit facilities of $102 million, proceeds from non-
recourse debt of $131 million, proceeds from the issuance of senior 
unsecured debt of $507 million, and net proceeds from common stock 
issuances of $138 million. These were partially offset by principal 
payments on credit facilities of $328 million, principal payments on 
non-recourse debt of $207 million, payments of deferred funding 
obligations of $19 million, payments of $9 million for withholding 
requirements as a result of the vesting of employee shares, and 
payments of dividends, distributions, and other financing activities 
of $96 million.

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Contractual Obligations and Commitments
The following table provides a summary of our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2020: 

(in millions)

Contractual Obligations

Credit facilities

Interest on credit facilities(1)

Non-recourse debt(2)

Interest on non-recourse debt(2)

Senior unsecured notes(3)

Interest on senior unsecured notes

Convertible notes(4)

Interest on convertible notes

Operating lease obligations

TOTAL

Payment due by Period

Total

Less than
1 year

1 - 3 Years

3 - 5 Years

More than
5 years

$

23 $

—  $

23 $

— $

2 

605 

225 

1,275 

353 

294 

12 

4 

1 

29 

24 

— 

64 

— 

6 

1 

1 

57 

45 

— 

129 

294 

6 

1 

— 

65 

39 

900 

90 

— 

— 

1 

—

— 

454 

117 

375 

70 

— 

— 

1 

$

2,793  $

125 $

556 $

1,095  $

1,017 

(1)  Interest is calculated based on the interest rate in effect at December 31, 2020, and includes all interest expense incurred and expected to be incurred in the future based 

on the current principal balance through the contractual maturity of the credit facilities. 

(2)  These amounts exclude $12 million of unamortized debt issuance costs. Interest is calculated based on the interest rate in effect at December 31, 2020, including the effect 

of interest rate hedges as applicable. 

(3)  Excludes $15 million of unamortized debt issuance costs and $2 million of unamortized issuance premium. 
(4)  Excludes $5 million of unamortized debt issuance costs.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We have relationships with non-consolidated entities or financial 
partnerships, such as entities often referred to as structured investment 
vehicles, or special purpose or variable interest entities, established 
to facilitate the sale of securitized assets. Other than our securitization 
assets (including any outstanding servicer advances) of approximately 
$164 million as of December 31, 2020, that may be at risk in the 
event of defaults or prepayments in our securitization trusts and as 
discussed below, and except as disclosed in Note 9 to our audited 
financial statements in this Form 10-K, we have not guaranteed any 
obligations of non-consolidated entities or entered into any commitment 
or intent to provide additional funding to any such entities. A more 
detailed description of our relations with non-consolidated entities 
can be found in Note 2 of our audited financial statements in this 
Form 10-K. 

Dividends
U.S. federal income tax law generally requires that a REIT distribute 
annually at least 90% of its REIT taxable income, without regard to the 
deduction for dividends paid and excluding net capital gains, and 
that it pays tax at regular corporate rates to the extent that it annually 
distributes less than 100% of its REIT taxable income. Our current policy 
is to pay quarterly distributions, which on an annual basis will equal 
or exceed substantially all of our REIT taxable income. The taxable 
income of the REIT can vary from our GAAP earnings due to a number 
of different factors, including, the book to tax timing differences of 
income and expense recognition from our transactions as well as 
the amount of taxable income of our TRS distributed to the REIT. See 
Note 10 regarding the amount of our distributions that are taxed as 
ordinary income to our stockholders. 

In  connection  with  some  of  our  transactions,  we  have  provided 
certain limited guarantees to other transaction participants covering 
the  accuracy  of  certain  limited  representations,  warranties  or 
covenants and provided an indemnity against certain losses from 
“bad acts” including fraud, failure to disclose a material fact, theft, 
misappropriation, voluntary bankruptcy or unauthorized transfers. In 
some transactions, we have also guaranteed our compliance with 
certain tax matters, such as negatively impacting the investment 
tax credit and certain other obligations in the event of a change in 
ownership or our exercising certain protective rights. 

Any distributions we make will be at the discretion of our board of 
directors and will depend upon, among other things, our actual results 
of operations. These results and our ability to pay distributions will 
be affected by various factors, including the net interest and other 
income from our portfolio, our operating expenses and any other 
expenditures. In the event that our board of directors determines to 
make distributions in excess of the income or cash flow generated from 
our assets, we may make such distributions from the proceeds of future 
offerings of equity or debt securities or other forms of debt financing or 
the sale of assets. To the extent that in respect of any calendar year, 
cash available for distribution is less than our taxable income, or our 
declared distribution we could be required to sell assets, borrow 
funds, or raise additional capital to make cash distributions or make 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

PA R T   I I

a portion of the required distribution in the form of a taxable stock 
distribution or distribution of debt securities. We will generally not 
be required to make distributions with respect to activities conducted 
through our domestic TRS. 

To the extent that we generate taxable income, distributions to our 
stockholders generally will be taxable as ordinary income, although 
all or a portion of such distributions may be designated by us as a 
qualified dividend or capital gain. Beginning in 2018 (and through 
taxable years ending in 2025), a deduction is permitted for certain 
pass-through business income, including “qualified REIT dividends” 
(generally, dividends received by a REIT shareholder that are not 
designated as capital gain dividends or qualified dividend income), 

which will allow U.S. individuals, trusts, and estates to deduct up to 
20% of such amounts, subject to certain limitations, resulting in an 
effective maximum U.S. federal income tax rate of 29.6% on such 
qualified REIT dividends. In the event we make distributions to our 
stockholders in excess of our taxable income, the excess will constitute 
a return of capital. In addition, a portion of such distributions may be 
taxable stock dividends payable in our shares. We will furnish annually 
to each of our stockholders a statement setting forth distributions paid 
during the preceding year and their characterization as ordinary 
income, return of capital, qualified dividend income or capital gain.

The dividends declared in 2020 and 2019 are described in Note 11 
of the audited financial statements in this Form 10-K.

Book Value Considerations
As of December 31, 2020, we carried only our investments and 
residual assets in securitized financial assets at fair value on our 
balance sheet. As a result, in reviewing our book value, there are a 
number of important factors and limitations to consider. Other than our 
investments and the residual assets in securitized financial assets that 
are carried on our balance sheet at fair value as of December 31, 
2020, the carrying value of our remaining assets and liabilities are 
calculated as of a particular point in time, which is largely determined 
at the time such assets and liabilities were added to our balance 
sheet using a cost basis in accordance with GAAP. Other than the 

allowance for current expected credit losses applied to our government 
and commercial receivables, our remaining assets and liabilities do 
not incorporate other factors that may have a significant impact on 
their value, most notably any impact of business activities, changes in 
estimates, or changes in general economic conditions, interest rates 
or commodity prices since the dates the assets or liabilities were 
initially recorded. Accordingly, our book value does not necessarily 
represent an estimate of our net realizable value, liquidation value or 
our market value.

Inflation
We do not anticipate that inflation will have a significant effect on our results of operations. However, in the event of a significant increase in 
inflation, interest rates could rise and our projects and investments may be materially adversely affected.

ITEM 7A.  QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

We anticipate that our primary market risks will be related to, the credit 
quality of our counterparties and project companies, market interest 
rates, the liquidity of our assets, commodity prices, and environmental 
factors. We will seek to manage these risks while, at the same time, 
seeking to provide an opportunity to stockholders to realize attractive 

returns through ownership of our common stock. Many of these risks 
have been magnified due to the continuing economic disruptions 
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic; however, while we continue to 
monitor the pandemic its impact on such risks remains uncertain and 
difficult to predict.

Credit Risks
We source and identify quality opportunities within our broad areas 
of expertise and apply our rigorous underwriting processes to our 
transactions, which, we believe, will generally enable us to minimize 
our credit losses and maintain access to attractive financing. In the 
case of various renewable energy and other sustainable infrastructure 
projects, we will be exposed to the credit risk of the obligor of the 
project’s PPA or other long-term contractual revenue commitments, as 
well as to the credit risk of certain suppliers and project operators. 
While  we  do  not  anticipate  facing  significant  credit  risk  in  our 
assets related to government energy efficiency projects, we are 
subject to varying degrees of credit risk in these projects in relation 
to guarantees provided by ESCOs where payments under energy 
savings performance contracts are contingent upon achieving pre-
determined levels of energy savings. We are exposed to credit risk 
in our other projects that do not benefit from governments as the 
obligor such as on balance sheet financing of projects undertaken 
by universities, schools and hospitals, as well as privately owned 

commercial projects. Our level of credit risk has increased, and 
is expected to continue to increase, as our strategy contemplates 
additional investments in mezzanine debt and equity. We seek to 
manage credit risk through thorough due diligence and underwriting 
processes, strong structural protections in our transaction agreements 
with customers and continual, active asset management and portfolio 
monitoring. Nevertheless, unanticipated credit losses could occur 
and during periods of economic downturn in the global economy, 
our exposure to credit risks from obligors increases, and our efforts 
to monitor and mitigate the associated risks may not be effective in 
reducing our credit risks.

We utilize a risk rating system to evaluate projects that we target. 
We first evaluate the credit rating of the obligors involved in the 
project using an average of the external credit ratings for an obligor, 
if available, or an estimated internal rating based on a third-party 
credit scoring system. We then estimate the probability of default 

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

PA R T   I I

and estimated recovery rate based on the obligors’ credit ratings 
and the terms of the contract. We also review the performance of 
each investment, including through, as appropriate, a review of 
project performance, monthly payment activity and active compliance 
monitoring, regular communications with project management and, as 
applicable, its obligors, sponsors and owners, monitoring the financial 

performance of the collateral, periodic property visits and monitoring 
cash management and reserve accounts. The results of our reviews 
are used to update the project’s risk rating as necessary. Additional 
detail of the credit risks surrounding our Portfolio can be found in Note 
6 to our financial statements in this Form 10-K. 

Interest Rate and Borrowing Risks
Interest  rate  risk  is  highly  sensitive  to  many  factors,  including 
governmental monetary and tax policies, domestic and international 
economic and political considerations and other factors beyond our 
control.

We are subject to interest rate risk in connection with new asset 
originations and our borrowings, including our credit facilities, and 
in the future, any new floating rate assets, credit facilities or other 
borrowings. Because short-term borrowings are generally short-term 
commitments of capital, lenders may respond to market conditions, 
making it more difficult for us to secure continued financing. If we 
are not able to renew our then existing borrowings or arrange for 
new financing on terms acceptable to us, or if we default on our 
covenants or are otherwise unable to access funds under any of these 
borrowings, we may have to curtail our origination of new assets 
and/or dispose of assets. We face particular risk in this regard given 
that we expect many of our borrowings will have a shorter duration 
than the assets they finance. Increasing interest rates may reduce 
the demand for our investments while declining interest rates may 
increase the demand. Both our current and future credit facilities and 
other borrowings may be of limited duration and are periodically 
refinanced at then current market rates. We attempt to reduce interest 
rate risks and to minimize exposure to interest rate fluctuations through 
the use of fixed rate financing structures, when appropriate, whereby 
we seek to (1) match the maturities of our debt obligations with the 
maturities of our assets, (2) borrow at fixed rates for a period of time, 
or (3) match the interest rates on our assets with like-kind debt (i.e., 
we may finance floating rate assets with floating rate debt and fixed-
rate assets with fixed-rate debt), directly or through the use of interest 
rate swap agreements, interest rate cap agreements or other financial 
instruments, or through a combination of these strategies. We expect 
these instruments will allow us to minimize, but not eliminate, the risk 
that we must refinance our liabilities before the maturities of our assets 
and to reduce the impact of changing interest rates on our earnings. 
In addition to the use of traditional derivative instruments, we also 
seek to mitigate interest rate risk by using securitizations, syndications 

Liquidity and Concentration Risk
The assets that comprise our asset portfolio are not and are not 
expected to be publicly traded. A portion of these assets may be 
subject to legal and other restrictions on resale or will otherwise be less 
liquid than publicly-traded securities. The illiquidity of our assets may 
make it difficult for us to sell such assets if the need or desire arises, 
including in response to changes in economic and other conditions. 
Certain of the projects in which we invest have one obligor and thus 

and other techniques to construct a portfolio with a staggered maturity 
profile. We monitor the impact of interest rate changes on the market 
for new originations and often have the flexibility to negotiate the term 
of our investments to offset interest rate increases.

Typically, our long-term debt is at fixed rates or we have used interest 
rate hedges that convert most of the floating rate debt to fixed rate. If 
interest rates rise, and our fixed rate debt balance remains constant, 
we expect the fair value of our fixed rate debt to decrease and the 
value of our hedges on floating rate debt to increase. See Note 3 to 
our financial statements in this Form 10-K for the estimated fair value 
of our fixed rate long-term debt, which is based on having the same 
debt service requirements that could have been borrowed at the date 
presented, at prevailing current market interest rates. 

Our credit facilities are variable rate lines or credit with approximately 
$23 million outstanding as of December 31, 2020. Increases in 
interest rates would result in higher interest expense while decreases 
in interest rates would result in lower interest expense. As described 
above, we may use various financing techniques including interest 
rate swap agreements, interest rate cap agreements or other financial 
instruments, or a combination of these strategies to mitigate the variable 
interest nature of these facilities. A 50 basis point increase in LIBOR 
would increase the quarterly interest expense related to the $23 million 
in variable rate borrowings by $28 thousand. Such hypothetical 
impact of interest rates on our variable rate borrowings does not 
consider the effect of any change in overall economic activity that 
could occur in a rising interest rate environment. Further, in the event of 
such a change in interest rates, we may take actions to further mitigate 
our exposure to such a change. However, due to the uncertainty of 
the specific actions that would be taken and their possible effects, the 
analysis assumes no changes in our financial structure.

We record certain of our assets at fair value in our financial statements 
and any changes in the discount rate would impact the value of 
these assets. See Note 3 of the audited financial statements in this 
Form 10-K.

we are subject to concentration risk for these investments and could 
incur significant losses if any of these projects perform poorly or if we 
are required to write down the value of any of these projects. Many of 
our assets, or the collateral supporting those assets, are concentrated in 
certain geographic areas, which may make those assets or the related 
collateral more susceptible to natural disasters or other regional events. 
See also “Credit Risks” discussed above.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTItem 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

PA R T   I I

Commodity Price Risk
When we make equity or debt investments for a renewable energy 
project that acts as a substitute for an underlying commodity, we may 
be exposed to volatility in prices for that commodity. The performance 
of renewable energy projects that produce electricity can be impacted 
by volatility in the market prices of various forms of energy, including 
electricity, coal and natural gas. This is especially true for utility scale 
projects that sell power on a wholesale basis such as many of our GC 
projects as opposed to BTM projects which compete against the retail 
or delivered costs of electricity which includes the cost of transmitting 
and distributing the electricity to the end user. 

Although we generally focus on renewable energy projects that have 
the majority of their operating cash flow supported by long-term PPAs 
or leases, many of our projects have shorter term contracts (which 
may have the potential of producing higher current returns) or sell 
their power in the open market on a merchant basis, the cash flows 
of such projects, and thus the repayment of, or the returns available 
for, our assets, are subject to risk if energy prices change. We also 
attempt to mitigate our exposure through structural protections. These 
structural protections, which are typically in the form of a preferred 
return mechanism, are designed to allow recovery of our capital and 

Environmental Risks
Our  business  is  impacted  by  the  effects  of  climate  change  and 
various  related  regulatory  responses.  We  discuss  the  risks  and 
opportunities  associated  with  the  impacts  of  climate  change  in 
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition 

Risk Management
Our ongoing active asset management and portfolio monitoring 
processes provide investment oversight and valuable insight into our 
origination, underwriting and structuring processes. These processes 
create value through active monitoring of the state of our markets, 
enforcement of existing contracts and asset management. As described 
above, we engage in a variety of interest rate management techniques 
that seek to mitigate the economic effect of interest rate changes on the 
values of, and returns on, some of our assets. While we have either 
written off or specifically identified only two transactions, amounting 
to approximately $19 million (net of recoveries) on the approximately 
$8 billion of transactions we originated since 2012, which represents 
an aggregate loss of approximately 0.2% on cumulative transactions 
originated over this time period, there can be no assurance that 
we will continue to be as successful, particularly as we invest in 
more credit sensitive assets or more equity investments and engage 
in increasing numbers of transactions with obligors other than U.S. 
federal government agencies. We seek to manage credit risk using 
thorough due diligence and underwriting processes, strong structural 

an acceptable return over time. When structuring and underwriting 
these transactions, we evaluate these transactions using a variety of 
scenarios, including natural gas prices remaining low for an extended 
period of time. Despite these protections, as low natural gas prices 
continue or PPAs expire, the cash flows from certain of our projects 
are exposed to these market conditions and we work with the projects 
sponsors to minimize any impact as part of our on-going active asset 
management and portfolio monitoring. In the case of utility scale solar 
projects, we focus on owning the land under the project where our 
rent is paid out of project operational costs before the debt or equity 
in the project receives any payments. 

We believe the current low prices in natural gas will increase demand 
for some types of our projects, such as combined heat and power, but 
may reduce the demand for other projects such as renewable energy 
that may be a substitute for natural gas. We seek to structure our 
energy efficiency investments so that we typically avoid exposure to 
commodity price risk. However, volatility in energy prices may cause 
building owners and other parties to be reluctant to commit to projects 
for which repayment is based upon a fixed monetary value for energy 
savings that would not decline if the price of energy declines. 

and Results of Operations - Impact of climate change on our future 
operations. This discussion outlines potential qualitative impacts to our 
business, quantitative illustrations of sensitivity as well as our strategy 
and resilience to these risks and opportunities. 

protections in our loan agreements with customers and continual, active 
asset management and portfolio monitoring. Additionally, we have 
established a Finance and Risk Committee of our board of directors 
which discusses and reviews policies and guidelines with respect to 
our risk assessment and risk management for various risks, including, 
but not limited to, our interest rate, counter party, credit, capital 
availability, and refinancing risks. As it relates to environmental risks, 
when we underwrite and structure our investments the environmental 
risks and opportunities are an integral consideration to our investment 
parameters. While we cannot fully protect our investments, we seek to 
mitigate these risks by using third party experts to conduct engineering 
and weather analysis and insurance reviews as appropriate. Once a 
transaction has closed we continue to monitor the environmental risks 
to the portfolio. We further discuss our strategy to managing these 
risks in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial 
Condition and Results of Operations - Impact of climate change on 
our future operations.

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HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPART II

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

ITEM 8.  FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

Hannon Armstrong 
Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc., Consolidated Financial Statements, For the Years Ended 
December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM 

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM 

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS 

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 

66

68

69

70

71

72

73

75

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of  
Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets 
of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (the 
Company)  as  of  December  31,  2020  and  2019,  the  related 
consolidated  statements  of  operations,  comprehensive  income, 
stockholders’ equity and cash flows for each of the three years in the 
period ended December 31, 2020, and the related notes (collectively 
referred to as the “consolidated financial statements”). In our opinion, 
the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material 
respects, the financial position of the Company at December 31, 
2020, and 2019, and the results of its operations and its cash flows 

for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2020, 
in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. 

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public 
Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the 
Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 
2020, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated 
Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of 
the Treadway Commission (2013 framework), and our report dated 
February 22, 2021 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

Adoption of ASU 2016-13
As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company changed its method of accounting for credit losses in 2020 due 
to the adoption of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2016-13, Financial Instruments — Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of 
Credit Losses on Financial Instruments, and the related amendments.

Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s 
management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the 
Company’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public 
accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be 
independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. 
federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the 
Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB. 

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the 
PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit 
to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements 

Critical Audit Matter
The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the 
current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated 
or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) 
relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial 
statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective or 

are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our 
audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material 
misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or 
fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such 
procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding 
the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits 
also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant 
estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall 
presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits 
provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

complex judgments. The communication of the critical audit matter 
does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial 
statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating 
the critical audit matter below, providing a separate opinion on the 
critical audit matter or on the account or disclosure to which it relates.

6 6  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Accounting for Equity Investments in Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Projects

Description of the Matter As discussed in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company makes equity investments in renewable 
energy and energy efficiency projects that are accounted for under the equity method of accounting. During the 
year ended December 31, 2020, the Company made new equity investments in renewable energy and energy 
efficiency projects amounting to $886 million and held $1.3 billion of equity investments in renewable energy 
and energy efficiency projects as of December 31, 2020. The Company’s determination that it does not have 
the power to direct the significant activities impacting each of the investees’ economic performance (“power”) is 
critical to its determination that it is not the primary beneficiary of the investee. Also, as described in Note 2 to 
the consolidated financial statements, for equity method investments that contain preferences with regard to cash 
flows from operations, capital events and liquidation in their respective limited liability company agreements (“LLC 
Agreements”), the Company applies the Hypothetical Liquidation at Book Value (“HLBV”) method to record its share 
of profits and losses on these investments. 

Auditing the Company’s determination of whether it has power was complex and required significant judgment to 
determine both the activities of the investee that most significantly impact the investee’s economics, and the distribution 
of the power among the members of the investee that ultimately determine the outcome of such activities. In addition, 
auditing the Company’s application of the HLBV method was challenging and inherently complex, because the 
application is based on its interpretations of the liquidation provisions outlined within investees’ LLC Agreements.

How We Addressed the 
Matter in our Audit

We tested controls that address the risks of material misstatement relating to: i) the determination of whether the 
Company has the power to direct the significant activities of the investees and ii) the recognition of its share of 
investees’ profits and losses through use of the HLBV method. For example, we tested controls over management’s 
review of the variable interest model and determination of whether the Company has power. We also tested controls 
over management’s review of the HLBV method, including the application of the liquidation provisions.

To evaluate whether the Company has power over each investee, our audit procedures included, among others, 
inspecting LLC Agreements and evaluating management’s analysis of the significant activities of the investee and 
which parties can direct those significant activities. For example, as part of our evaluation, we considered the 
purpose and design of the investee and the legal rights of each of the involved parties, including the significance 
of the decisions that each party makes. We also tested the rights of each party included in management’s analysis 
by comparing such rights to the LLC Agreements. 

We tested the Company’s application of the HLBV method for a sample of both new and existing investments. 
Our audit procedures included, among others, involving tax professionals to assist in evaluating the Company’s 
application of the liquidation provisions within the LLC Agreements. Specifically, we assessed the Company’s HLBV 
calculations by agreeing inputs to the calculations, such as the application of stated preferred returns and allocation 
of tax attributes, to the terms of the LLC Agreements for each of these investments. We also performed additional 
procedures on the Company’s HLBV calculations that included recalculating the stated preferred returns, allocations 
of tax attributes, and the Company’s share of profits and losses of the investee. 

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 1983.

Tysons, Virginia

February 22, 2021

|  6 7

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of 
Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

Opinion on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
We have audited Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, 
Inc.’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 
2020, based on criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated 
Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of 
the Treadway Commission (2013 framework) (the COSO criteria). In 
our opinion, Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. 
(the Company) maintained, in all material respects, effective internal 
control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020, based 
on the COSO criteria. 

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public 
Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the 
consolidated balance sheets of the Company as of December 31, 
2020 and 2019, the related consolidated statements of operations, 
comprehensive income, stockholders’ equity and cash flows for each 
of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2020, and the 
related notes and our report dated February 22, 2021 expressed an 
unqualified opinion thereon.

Basis for Opinion
The Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective 
internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the 
effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in 
the accompanying Management’s Report on Internal Control Over 
Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on 
the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our 
audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB 
and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in 
accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable 
rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission 
and the PCAOB. 

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the 
PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit 
to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control 
over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. 

Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control 
over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness 
exists, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness 
of internal control based on the assessed risk, and performing such 
other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. 
We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion. 

Definition and Limitations of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process 
designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability 
of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements 
for  external  purposes  in  accordance  with  generally  accepted 
accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial 
reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the 
maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly 
reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; 
(2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as 
necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance 
with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and 

expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with 
authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) 
provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection 
of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets 
that could have a material effect on the financial statements. 

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial 
reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections 
of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to 
the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes 
in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or 
procedures may deteriorate. 

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

Tysons, Virginia

February 22, 2021

6 8  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(Dollars in thousands, except per share data)

December 31, 2020

December 31, 2019

Assets

Cash and cash equivalents

Equity method investments

Government receivables

Commercial receivables, net of allowance of $36 million and $8 million, respectively

Real estate

Investments

Securitization assets

Other assets

TOTAL ASSETS

Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity

Liabilities:

Accounts payable, accrued expenses and other

Credit facilities

Non-recourse debt (secured by assets of $723 million and $921 million, respectively)

Senior unsecured notes

Convertible notes

Total Liabilities

Stockholders’ Equity:

Preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share, 50,000,000 shares authorized, no shares issued 
and outstanding

Common stock, par value $0.01 per share, 450,000,000 shares authorized, 76,457,415 
and 66,338,120 shares issued and outstanding, respectively

Additional paid in capital

Accumulated deficit

Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)

Non-controlling interest

Total Stockholders’ Equity

TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

See accompanying notes.

$

286,250  $

1,279,651 

248,455 

965,452 

359,176 

55,377 

164,342 

100,364 

6,208 

498,631 

263,175 

896,432 

362,265 

74,530 

123,979 

162,054 

$

$

3,459,067  $

2,387,274 

59,944  $

22,591 

592,547 

1,283,335 

290,501 

2,248,918 

— 

765 

54,351 

31,199 

700,225 

512,153 

149,434 

1,447,362 

— 

663 

1,394,009 

1,102,303 

(204,112)

(169,786)

12,634 

6,853 

3,300 

3,432 

1,210,149 

939,912 

$

3,459,067  $

2,387,274 

|  6 9

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(Dollars in thousands, except per share data) 

Revenue

Interest income

Rental income

Gain on sale of receivables and investments

Fee income

TOTAL REVENUE

Expenses

Interest expense

Provision for loss on receivables

Compensation and benefits

General and administrative

TOTAL EXPENSES

Income before equity method investments

Income (loss) from equity method investments

Income (loss) before income taxes

Income tax benefit (expense) 

Net income (loss)

Net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interest holders

Net income (loss) attributable to controlling stockholders

Basic earnings (loss) per common share

Diluted earnings (loss) per common share

Weighted average common shares outstanding—basic

Weighted average common shares outstanding—diluted

See accompanying notes.

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

95,559  $

76,200  $

25,878 

49,887 

15,583 

25,884 

24,423 

15,074 

75,935 

24,606 

32,928 

5,927 

186,907 

141,581 

139,396 

92,182 

10,096 

37,766 

14,846 

64,241 

8,027 

28,777 

14,693 

154,890 

115,738 

32,017 

47,963 

79,980 

2,779 

82,759 

343 

25,843 

64,174 

90,017 

(8,097)

81,920 

356 

76,874 

— 

25,651 

15,091 

117,616 

21,780 

22,162 

43,942 

(2,144)

41,798 

221 

$

$

$

82,416  $

81,564  $

41,577 

1.13  $

1.10  $

1.25  $

1.24  $

0.75 

0.75 

72,387,581 

63,916,440 

52,780,449 

74,373,169 

64,771,491 

52,780,449 

7 0  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

(Dollars in thousands)

Net income (loss)

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

82,759  $

81,920  $

41,798 

Unrealized gain (loss) on available-for-sale securities, net of tax (provision) benefit of  
$(1.1) million, $(0.6) million and $0.1 million in 2020, 2019, and 2018 respectively

Unrealized gain (loss) on interest rate swaps, net of tax (provision) benefit of $1.0 million, 
$1.8 million, and $0.0 million  in 2020, 2019, and 2018 respectively

Comprehensive income (loss)

Less: Comprehensive income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interest holders

12,437 

11,249 

(1,177)

(3,063)

92,133 

383 

(6,243)

86,926 

378 

555 

41,176 

218 

COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) ATTRIBUTABLE TO CONTROLLING STOCKHOLDERS

$

91,750  $

86,548  $

40,958 

See accompanying notes.

|  7 1

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Issuance (repurchase) of vested equity-based compensation shares

226 

(Amounts in thousands)

Balance at December 31, 2017

Net income

Unrealized gain (loss) on available-for-sale securities

Unrealized gain (loss) on interest rate swaps

Issued shares of common stock

Equity-based compensation

Other

Dividends and distributions

Balance at December 31, 2018

Net income

Unrealized gain (loss) on available-for-sale securities

Unrealized gain (loss) on interest rate swaps

Issued shares of common stock

Equity-based compensation

Issuance (repurchase) of vested equity-based compensation shares

Other

Tax basis difference on contributed asset

Dividends and distributions

Balance at December 31, 2019

Net income (loss)

Adoption of ASU 2016-13, net of tax effect

Unrealized gain (loss) on available-for-sale securities

Unrealized gain (loss) on interest rate swaps

Issued shares of common stock

Equity-based compensation

Issuance (repurchase) of vested equity-based compensation shares

Other

Dividends and distributions

Common Stock

Shares

Amount

Additional 
Paid-in  
Capital

Accumulated 
Deficit

Accumulated 
Other 
Comprehensive 
Income (Loss)

Non-
controlling 
Interest

Total

51,665  $

517  $

770,983  $

(131,251) $

(1,065) $

3,597  $

642,781 

60,510  $

605  $

965,384  $

(163,205) $

(1,684) $

3,423  $

804,523 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

8,611 

86 

186,808 

10,715 

(3,055)

(67)

2 

— 

— 

8 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

5,399 

54 

138,347 

— 

425 

4 

— 

— 

— 

4 

— 

— 

— 

12,355 

(9,173)

(61)

(4,549)

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

9,523 

96 

298,375 

— 

537 

59 

— 

— 

6 

— 

— 

9,711 

(17,293)

913 

41,577 

— 

221 

41,798 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(1,171)

552 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

(6)

3 

— 

57 

— 

(79)

(370)

(1,177)

555 

186,894 

10,772 

(3,053)

(146)

(73,901)

— 

(73,531)

81,564 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

82,416 

(14,031)

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

11,200 

(6,216)

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

356 

49 

(27)

— 

55 

— 

(43)

— 

81,920 

11,249 

(6,243)

138,401 

12,410 

(9,169)

(104)

(4,549)

(381)

(88,526)

— 

— 

12,380 

(3,046)

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

343 

(74)

57 

(17)

82,759 

(14,105)

12,437 

(3,063)

— 

298,471 

4,812 

14,523 

— 

(17,287)

(859)

(841)

54 

(103,552)

— 

(102,711)

66,338  $

663  $ 1,102,303  $

(169,786) $

3,300  $

3,432  $

939,912 

— 

(88,145)

BALANCE AT DECEMBER 31, 2020

76,457  $

765  $ 1,394,009  $ (204,112) $

12,634  $ 6,853  $ 1,210,149 

See accompanying notes.

7 2  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
 
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(Dollars in thousands)

Cash flows from operating activities

Net income (loss)

Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:

Provision for loss on receivables

Depreciation and amortization

Amortization of financing costs

Equity-based compensation

Equity method investments

Non-cash gain on securitization

Gain on sale of receivables and investments

Changes in receivables held-for-sale

Loss on debt extinguishment

Changes in accounts payable and accrued expenses

Accrued interest and other

Net cash provided by operating activities

Cash flows from investing activities

Equity method investments

Equity method investment distributions received

Proceeds from sales of equity method investments

Purchases of and investments in receivables

Principal collections from receivables

Proceeds from sales of receivables

Purchases of real estate

Purchases of investments

Principal collections from investments

Proceeds from sales of investments and securitization assets

Funding of escrow accounts

Withdrawal from escrow accounts

Other

Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities

(831,652)

(201,141)

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

82,759  $

81,920  $

41,798 

10,096 

3,580 

7,789 

16,791 

13,099 

(55,413)

13,811 

— 

— 

8,023 

(27,253)

73,282 

8,027 

3,593 

6,435 

14,160 

(34,392)

(56,717)

13,241 

— 

— 

5,184 

(11,962)

29,489 

— 

4,526 

10,727 

10,066 

4,312 

(25,728)

— 

12,685 

9,245 

6,882 

(15,720)

58,793 

(885,862)

(152,096)

(76,349)

98,571 

— 

71,183 

81,297 

88,160 

35,849 

(256,323)

(497,866)

(292,834)

132,958 

57,670 

345,956 

59,398 

134,932 

— 

— 

(40,185)

(45,830)

2,424 

68,520 

(23,178)

8,094 

3,931 

6,626 

139,230 

(28,953)

30,707 

1,959 

— 

(27,549)

(25,308)

5,252 

— 

(34,980)

33,108 

(505)

50,800 

|  7 3

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

(Dollars in thousands)

Cash flows from financing activities

Proceeds from credit facilities

Principal payments on credit facilities

Proceeds from issuance of non-recourse debt

Principal payments on non-recourse debt

Proceeds from issuance of senior unsecured notes

Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes

Payments on deferred funding obligations

Net proceeds of common stock issuances

Payments of dividends and distributions

Withholdings on employee share vesting

Other

Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities

Increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash

Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at beginning of period

CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, AND RESTRICTED CASH AT END OF PERIOD

Interest paid

Non-cash changes in deferred funding obligations and non-recourse debt (financing activity)

Non-cash changes in receivables and investments (investing activity)

Non-cash changes in residual assets (investing activity)

See accompanying notes.

Years Ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

126,000 

101,500 

171,783 

(134,594)

(328,465)

15,938 

130,988 

(46,604)

69,255 

(125,969)

(206,705)

(390,537)

771,250 

143,750 

507,313 

— 

— 

— 

(629)

(18,791)

(73,946)

298,070 

138,383 

187,265 

(99,867)

(17,287)

(14,547)

962,115 

203,745 

106,586 

(86,406)

(9,168)

(9,764)

(70,989)

(3,053)

(11,591)

218,885 

(168,417)

47,233 

59,353 

(58,824)

118,177 

$

$

310,331  $

106,586  $

59,353 

75,934  $

48,056  $

72,078 

— 

— 

(56,967)

(112,027)

93,730 

(61,001)

(6,973)

(248)

(25,827)

7 4  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

December 31, 2020 

The Company

1. 
Hannon  Armstrong  Sustainable  Infrastructure  Capital,  Inc.  (the 
“Company”) focuses on making investments in climate solutions by 
providing capital to the leading companies in the energy efficiency, 
renewable energy and other sustainable infrastructure markets. Our goal 
is to generate attractive returns from a diversified portfolio of projects 
with long-term and predictable cash flows from proven technologies 
that reduce carbon emissions or increase resilience to climate change.  

The Company and its subsidiaries are hereafter referred to as “we,” 
“us,” or “our.” Our investments take various forms, including equity, 
joint ventures, lending or other financing transactions, as well as real 
estate ownership and typically benefit from contractually committed 
high credit quality obligors. We also generate on-going fees through 
off-balance sheet securitization transactions, advisory services and 
asset management. We refer to the income producing assets that we 
hold on our balance sheet as our “Portfolio.” Our Portfolio may include:   

zz Equity  investments  in  either  preferred  or  common  structures  in 

unconsolidated entities; 

zz Government  and  commercial  receivables,  such  as  loans  for 

renewable energy and energy efficiency projects; 

zz Real estate, such as land or other assets leased for use by sustainable 

infrastructure projects typically under long-term leases; and

zz Investments  in  debt  securities  of  renewable  energy  or  energy 

efficiency projects.

We finance our business through cash on hand, borrowings under 
credit facilities and debt transactions, asset-backed securitization 
transactions and equity issuances. We also generate fee income 
through securitizations and syndications, by providing broker/dealer 
services and by managing and servicing assets owned by third 
parties. Some of our subsidiaries are special purpose entities that are 
formed for specific operations associated with investing in sustainable 
infrastructure receivables for specific long-term contracts.

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) 
under the symbol “HASI.” We have qualified as a real estate investment 
trust (“REIT”) and also intend to continue to operate our business in 
a manner that will maintain our exemption from registration as an 
investment company under the 1940 Act, as amended. We operate 
our business through, and serve as the sole general partner of, our 
operating partnership subsidiary, Hannon Armstrong Sustainable 
Infrastructure, L.P., (the “Operating Partnership”), which was formed 
to acquire and directly or indirectly own our assets.

2. 

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Presentation

The preparation of financial statements in accordance with U.S. 
generally  accepted  accounting  principles  (“GAAP”)  requires 
management  to  make  estimates  and  assumptions  that  affect  the 
reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the reported amounts 
of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results 
could  differ  from  these  estimates  and  such  differences  could  be 
material. Certain amounts in the prior years have been reclassified to 
conform to the current year presentation. The consolidated financial 
statements include our accounts and controlled subsidiaries, including 
the Operating Partnership. All material intercompany transactions and 
balances have been eliminated in consolidation.

Following  the  guidance  for  non-controlling  interests  in  Financial 
Accounting  Standards  Board  (“FASB”)  Accounting  Standards 
Codification (“ASC”) 810, Consolidation (“ASC 810”), references 
in this report to our earnings per share and our net income and 
stockholders’ equity attributable to common stockholders do not include 
amounts attributable to non-controlling interests.

Consolidation 

We account for our investments in entities that are considered voting 
interest entities or variable interest entities (“VIEs”) under ASC 810 and 

assess whether we should consolidate these entities on an ongoing 
basis.  We  have  established  various  special  purpose  entities  or 
securitization trusts for the purpose of securitizing certain assets which 
are not consolidated in our financial statements as described below 
in Securitization of Financial Assets. 

Since we have assessed that we have power over and receive the 
benefits from those special purpose entities that are formed for the 
purpose of holding our government and commercial receivables and 
investments on our balance sheet, we have concluded we are the 
primary beneficiary and should consolidate these entities under the 
provisions of ASC 810. We also have certain subsidiaries we deem 
to be voting interest entities that we control through our ownership of 
voting interests and accordingly consolidate.  

Certain of our equity method investments were determined to be 
interests in VIEs in which we are not the primary beneficiary, as we do 
not direct the significant activities of these entities, and thus we account 
for those investments as Equity Method Investments as discussed 
below. Our maximum exposure to loss through these investments is 
limited to their recorded values. However, we may provide financial 
commitments to these VIEs or guarantees of certain of their obligations. 
Certain other equity method investments have been assessed to be 
voting interest entities as we exert significant influence through our 
ownership of voting interests, and accordingly we do not consolidate.

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Equity Method Investments

We have made equity investments in various renewable energy and 
energy efficiency projects. These investments are typically owned in 
holding companies (using limited liability companies (“LLCs”) taxed as 
partnerships) where we partner with either the operator of the project 
or other institutional investors. We share in the cash flows, income, 
and tax attributes according to a negotiated schedule (which typically 
does not correspond with our ownership percentages). Investors, if any, 
in a preferred return position typically receive a stated preferred return 
consisting of a priority distribution of all or a portion of the project’s 
cash flows, and in some cases, tax attributes. Once the stated return, 
if applicable, is achieved, the partnership “flips” and the operator of 
the project along with any other common equity investors receive a 
larger portion of the cash flows, with the previously preferred investors 
retaining an on-going residual interest. 

Our equity investments in renewable energy or energy efficiency 
projects are accounted for under the equity method of accounting. 
Under the equity method of accounting, the carrying value of these 
equity  method  investments  is  determined  based  on  amounts  we 
invested, adjusted for the equity in earnings or losses of the investee 
allocated based on the LLC agreement, less distributions received. For 
the LLC agreements which contain preferences with regard to cash 
flows from operations, capital events and liquidation, we reflect our 
share of profits and losses by determining the difference between our 
claim on the investee’s book value at the beginning and the end of the 
period, which is adjusted for distributions received and contributions 
made. This claim is calculated as the amount we would receive if the 
investee were to liquidate all of its assets at the recorded amounts 
determined in accordance with GAAP and distribute the resulting 
cash to creditors and investors in accordance with their respective 
priorities. This method is referred to as the hypothetical liquidation 
at book value method (“HLBV”). Any difference between the amount 
of our investment and the amount of underlying equity in net assets 
is generally amortized over the life of the assets and liabilities to 
which the difference relates. Cash distributions received from these 
equity method investments are classified as operating activities to the 
extent of cumulative HLBV earnings in our consolidated statements of 
cash flows. Our initial investment and additional cash distributions 
beyond that which are classified as operating activities are classified 
as investing activities in our consolidated statements of cash flows. 
We typically recognize earnings one quarter in arrears for certain 
of these investments to allow for the receipt of financial information. 

We evaluate on a quarterly basis whether our investments accounted 
for using the equity method have an other than temporary impairment 
(“OTTI”). An OTTI occurs when the estimated fair value of an investment 
is below the carrying value and the difference is determined to not be 
recoverable. This evaluation requires significant judgment regarding, 
but not limited to, the severity and duration of the impairment; the ability 
and intent to hold the securities until recovery; financial condition, 
liquidity, and near-term prospects of the issuer; specific events; and 
other factors. 

Government and Commercial Receivables

Government and commercial receivables (“receivables”) include 
project loans and receivables. These receivables are separately 
presented in our balance sheet to illustrate the differing nature of the 
credit risk related to these assets. Unless otherwise noted, we generally 
have the ability and intent to hold our receivables for the foreseeable 
future and thus they are classified as held for investment. Our ability 

and intent to hold certain receivables may change from time to time 
depending on a number of factors including economic, liquidity and 
capital market conditions. At inception of the arrangement, the carrying 
value of receivables held for investment represents the present value of 
the note, lease or other payments, net of any unearned fee income, 
which is recognized as income over the term of the note or lease using 
the effective interest method. Receivables that are held for investment 
are carried at amortized cost, net of any unamortized acquisition 
premiums or discounts and include origination and acquisition costs, 
as applicable. Our initial investment and principal repayments of 
these receivables are classified as investing activities and the interest 
collected is classified as operating activities in our consolidated 
statements of cash flows. Receivables that we intend to sell in the 
short-term are classified as held-for-sale and are carried at the lower 
of amortized cost or fair value on our balance sheet. The purchases 
and proceeds from receivables that we intend to sell at origination 
are classified as operating activities in our consolidated statements of 
cash flows. Interest collected is classified as an operating activity in 
our consolidated statements of cash flows. Certain of our receivables 
may include the ability to defer required interest payments in exchange 
for increasing the receivable balance at the borrower’s option. We 
generally accrue this paid-in-kind (“PIK”) interest when collection is 
expected, and cease accruing PIK interest if there is insufficient value 
to support the accrual or we expect that any portion of the principal 
or interest due is not collectible.

We evaluate our receivables for an allowance as determined under 
ASC Topic 326 Financial Instruments- Credit Losses (“Topic 326”) 
and for our internally derived asset performance categories included 
in Note 6 on at least a quarterly basis and more frequently when 
economic or other conditions warrant such an evaluation. When a 
receivable becomes 90 days or more past due, and if we otherwise 
do not expect the debtor to be able to service all of its debt or other 
obligations, we will generally consider the receivable delinquent or 
impaired and place the receivable on non-accrual status and cease 
recognizing  income  from  that  receivable  until  the  borrower  has 
demonstrated the ability and intent to pay contractual amounts due. 
If a receivable’s status significantly improves regarding the debtor’s 
ability to service the debt or other obligations, we will remove it from 
non-accrual status. 

Prior to January 1, 2020, a receivable was also considered impaired 
as of the date when, based on current information and events, it was 
determined that it was probable that we would be unable to collect all 
amounts due in accordance with the original contracted terms. Many 
of our receivables are secured by energy efficiency and renewable 
energy infrastructure projects. Accordingly, we evaluated the extent 
and impact of any credit deterioration associated with the performance 
and value of the underlying project, as well as the financial and 
operating capability of the borrower, its sponsors or the obligor as well 
as any guarantors. If a receivable was impaired, we determined if a 
specific allowance should be recorded and recorded such allowance 
if the present value of expected future cash flows discounted at the 
receivable’s contractual effective rate was less than its carrying value. 
This estimate of cash flows also considered the estimated fair market 
value of the collateral less estimated selling costs if repayment was 
expected from the collateral.

Beginning January 1, 2020, we determine our allowance based on 
the current expectation of credit losses over the contractual life of our 
receivables as required by Topic 326. We use a variety of methods 
in developing our allowance including discounted cash flow analysis 

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and probability-of-default/loss given default (“PD/LGD”) methods. In 
developing our estimates, we consider our historical experience with 
our and similar assets in addition to our view of both current conditions 
and what we expect to occur within a period of time for which we can 
develop reasonable and supportable forecasts, typically two years. 
For periods following the reasonable and supportable forecast period, 
we revert to historical information when developing assumptions used 
in our estimates. In developing our forecasts, we consider a number 
of qualitative and quantitative factors in our assessment, including 
a project’s operating results, loan-to-value ratio, any cash reserves, 
the ability of expected cash from operations to cover the cash flow 
requirements currently and into the future, key terms of the transaction, 
the ability of the borrower to refinance the transaction, other credit 
support from the sponsor or guarantor and the project’s collateral 
value. In addition, we consider the overall economic environment, 
the sustainable infrastructure sector, the effect of local, industry, and 
broader economic factors such as unemployment rates and power 
prices, the impact of any variation in weather and the historical and 
anticipated trends in interest rates, defaults and loss severities for similar 
transactions. For those assets where we record our allowance using a 
discounted cash flow method, we have elected to record the change 
in allowance due solely to the passage of time through the provision 
for loss on receivables in our income statement. For assets where the 
obligor is a publicly rated entity, we consider the published historical 
performance of entities with similar ratings in developing our estimate 
of an allowance, making adjustments determined by management to 
be appropriate during the reasonable and supportable forecast period. 
We have made certain loan commitments that are within the scope of 
Topic 326. When estimating an allowance for these loan commitments 
we consider the probability of certain amounts to be funded and apply 
either a discounted cash flow or PD/LGD methodology as described 
above. We charge off receivables against the allowance, if any, 
when we determine the unpaid principal balance is uncollectible, net 
of recovered amounts. Any provision we record for an allowance is 
a non-cash reconciling item to cash from operating activities in our 
consolidated statements of cash flows. 

Real Estate

Real estate consists of land or other real estate and its related lease 
intangibles, net of any amortization. Our real estate is generally 
leased to tenants on a triple net lease basis, whereby the tenant is 
responsible for all operating expenses relating to the property, generally 
including property taxes, insurance, maintenance, repairs and capital 
expenditures. Certain real estate transactions may be characterized 
as “failed sale-leaseback” transactions as defined under ASC Topic 
842 (“Topic 842”), Leases, and thus are accounted for similarly to 
our Commercial Receivables as described above in Government and 
Commercial Receivables.

For our other real estate lease transactions that are classified as 
operating leases, the scheduled rental revenue typically varies during 
the lease term and thus rental income is recognized on a straight-line 
basis, unless there is considerable risk as to collectability, so as to 
produce a constant periodic rent over the term of the lease. Accrued 
rental income is the aggregate difference between the scheduled rents 
which vary during the lease term and the income recognized on a 
straight-line basis and is recorded in other assets. Expenses, if any, 
related to the ongoing operation of leases where we are the lessor are 
charged to operations as incurred. Our initial investment is classified as 
investing activities and income collected for rental income is classified 
as operating activities in our consolidated statements of cash flows.

When our real estate transactions are treated as an asset acquisition 
with an operating lease, we typically record our real estate purchases 
at cost, including acquisition and closing costs, which is allocated to 
each tangible and intangible asset acquired on a relative fair value 
basis.

The fair value of the tangible assets of an acquired leased property 
is determined by valuing the property as if it were vacant, and the 
“as-if-vacant” value is then allocated to land, building and tenant 
improvements, if any, based on the determination of the fair values 
of these assets. The as-if-vacant fair value of a property is typically 
determined by management based on appraisals by a qualified 
appraiser. In determining the fair value of the identified intangibles of 
an acquired property, above-market and below-market in-place lease 
values are valued based on the present value (using an interest rate 
which reflects the risks associated with the leases acquired) of the 
difference between (i) the contractual amounts to be paid pursuant to 
the in-place leases, and (ii) management’s estimate of fair market lease 
rates for the corresponding in-place leases, measured over a period 
equal to the remaining term of the lease, including renewal periods 
reasonably certain of being exercised by the lessee.

The capitalized off-market lease values are amortized as an adjustment 
to rental income over the term used to value the intangible. We also 
record, as appropriate, an intangible asset for in-place leases. The 
value of the leases in place at the time of the transaction is equal to the 
potential income lost if the leases were not in place. The amortization 
of this intangible occurs over the initial term unless management 
believes that it is reasonably certain that the tenant would exercise the 
renewal option, in which case the amortization would extend through 
the renewal period. If a lease were to be terminated, all unamortized 
amounts relating to that lease would be written off.

Investments

Investments are debt securities that meet the criteria of ASC 320, 
Investments-Debt and Equity Securities. We have designated our debt 
securities as available-for-sale and carry these securities at fair value 
on our balance sheet. Unrealized gains and losses, to the extent not 
considered to be credit related, on available-for-sale debt securities are 
recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income 
(“AOCI”) in equity on our balance sheet. When a security is sold, we 
reclassify the AOCI to earnings based on specific identification. Our 
initial investment and principal repayments of these investments are 
classified as investing activities and the interest collected is classified 
as operating activities in our consolidated statements of cash flows. 

We evaluate our investments for impairment on at least a quarterly 
basis, and more frequently when economic or market conditions 
warrant such an evaluation. Our impairment assessment is a subjective 
process requiring the use of judgments and assumptions. Accordingly, 
we regularly evaluate the extent and impact of any credit deterioration 
associated with the financial and operating performance and value of 
the underlying project. We consider several qualitative and quantitative 
factors in our assessment. The primary factor in our assessment is the 
current fair value of the security, while other factors include changes in 
the credit rating, performance of the underlying project, key terms of 
the transaction, the value of any collateral and any support provided 
by the sponsor or guarantor. 

To the extent that we have identified an impairment for a security, 
intend to hold the investment to maturity, and do not expect that we will 
be required to sell the security prior to recovery of the amortized cost 

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basis, we will recognize only the credit component of the unrealized 
loss in earnings by recording an allowance against the amortized 
cost of the asset as required by Topic 326. We determine the credit 
component using the difference between the security’s amortized 
cost basis and the present value of its expected future cash flows, 
discounted using the effective interest method or its estimated collateral 
value. Any remaining unrealized loss due to factors other than credit 
is recorded in AOCI. 

To the extent we hold investments with a fair value less than the 
amortized cost and we have made the decision to sell the security or 
it is more likely than not that we will be required to sell the security 
prior to recovery of its amortized cost basis, we recognize the entire 
portion of the impairment in earnings. 

Premiums or discounts on investment securities are amortized or 
accreted into interest income using the effective interest method. 

Securitization of Financial Assets

We have established various special purpose entities or securitization 
trusts for the purpose of securitizing certain financial assets. We 
determined that the trusts used in securitizations are VIEs, as defined in 
ASC 810. When we conclude that we are not the primary beneficiary 
of certain trusts because we do not have power over those trusts’ 
significant activities, we do not consolidate the trust. We typically serve 
as primary or master servicer of these trusts; however, as the servicer, 
we do not have the power to make significant decisions impacting 
the performance of the trusts. 

We account for transfers of financial assets to these securitization trusts 
as sales pursuant to ASC 860, Transfers and Servicing (“ASC 860”), 
when we have concluded the transferred assets have been isolated 
from the transferor (i.e., put presumptively beyond the reach of the 
transferor and its creditors, even in bankruptcy or other receivership) 
and we have surrendered control over the transferred assets. We 
treat those trusts where we are unable to conclude that we have been 
isolated from the securitized financial assets as secured borrowings, 
retaining the assets on our balance sheet and recording the amounts 
due to the trust investor as non-recourse debt. 

For transfers treated as sales under ASC 860, we have received 
true-sale-at-law and non-consolidation legal opinions for all of our 
securitization trust structures that support our conclusion regarding 
the transferred financial assets. When we sell financial assets in 
securitizations, we generally retain interests in the form of servicing 
rights and residual assets, which we refer to as securitization assets.

Gain or loss on the sale of financial assets is calculated based on 
the excess of the proceeds received from the securitization (less any 
transaction costs) plus any retained interests obtained over the cost 
basis of the assets sold. For retained interests, we generally estimate 
fair value based on the present value of future expected cash flows 
using our best estimates of the key assumptions of anticipated losses, 
prepayment rates, and current market discount rates commensurate 
with the risks involved. Cash flows related to our securitizations at 
origination are classified as operating activities in our consolidated 
statements of cash flows. 

We initially account for all separately recognized servicing assets 
and servicing liabilities at fair value and subsequently measure such 
servicing assets and liabilities using the amortization method. Servicing 
assets and liabilities are amortized in proportion to, and over the 
period of, estimated net servicing income with servicing income 

recognized as earned. We assess servicing assets for impairment 
at each reporting date. If the amortized cost of servicing assets is 
greater than the estimated fair value, we will recognize an impairment 
in net income. 

Our other retained interest in securitized assets, the residual assets, are 
accounted for similarly to available-for-sale debt securities and carried 
at fair value. Our residual assets are evaluated for impairment on a 
quarterly basis. Income related to the residual assets is recognized 
using the effective interest rate method and included in fee income 
in the income statement. If there is a change in the expected cash 
flows related to the residual assets, we will assess whether the asset 
is impaired and will calculate a new yield based on the current 
amortized cost of the residual assets and the revised expected cash 
flows. This yield is used prospectively to recognize our income related 
to these assets. 

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include short-term government securities, 
certificates of deposit and money market funds, all of which had an 
original maturity of three months or less at the date of purchase. These 
securities are carried at their purchase price, which approximates 
fair value.

Restricted Cash

Restricted cash includes cash and cash equivalents set aside with 
certain lenders primarily to support obligations outstanding as of the 
balance sheet dates. Restricted cash is reported as part of other assets 
in the consolidated balance sheets. Refer to Note 3 for disclosure of 
the balances of restricted cash included in other assets.

Convertible Notes

We have issued convertible senior notes that are accounted for in 
accordance with ASC 470-20, Debt with Conversion and Other 
Options, and ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging (“ASC 815”). 
Under ASC 815, issuers of certain convertible debt instruments are 
generally required to separately account for the conversion option of 
the convertible debt instrument as either a derivative or equity, unless 
it meets the scope exemption for contracts indexed to, and settled in, 
an issuer’s own equity. Since this conversion option is both indexed to 
our equity and can only be settled in our common stock, we have met 
the scope exemption, and therefore, we are not separately accounting 
for the embedded conversion option. The initial issuance and any 
principal repayments are classified as financing activities and interest 
payments are classified as operating activities in our consolidated 
statements of cash flows.

Income Taxes

We elected and qualified to be taxed as a REIT for U.S. federal income 
tax purposes, commencing with our taxable year ended December 31, 
2013. We also have taxable REIT subsidiaries (“TRS”) which are taxed 
separately, and which will generally be subject to U.S. federal, state, 
and local income taxes as well as taxes of foreign jurisdictions, if 
any. To qualify as a REIT, we must meet on an ongoing basis several 
organizational and operational requirements, including a requirement 
that we currently distribute at least 90% of our REIT’s net taxable income 
before dividends paid, excluding capital gains, to our stockholders. 
As a REIT, we are not subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax on 
that portion of net income that is currently distributed to our owners. 

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We account for income taxes under ASC 740, Income Taxes (“ASC 
740”) for our TRS using the asset and liability method. Deferred 
tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax 
consequences attributable to the differences between the consolidated 
financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities 
and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are 
measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those 
temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The 
effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities from a change in tax rates 
is recognized in earnings in the period when the new rate is enacted. 
We evaluate any deferred tax assets for valuation allowances based 
on an assessment of available evidence including sources of taxable 
income, prior years taxable income, any existing taxable temporary 
differences and our future investment and business plans that may 
give rise to taxable income. We treat any tax credits we receive from 
our equity investments in renewable energy projects as reductions 
of federal income taxes of the year in which the credit arises. Any 
deferred tax impacts resulting from transfers of assets to or from our 
TRS are recorded as an adjustment to additional paid-in capital, as it 
is a transfer amongst entities under common control.

We apply ASC 740 with respect to how uncertain tax positions should 
be recognized, measured, presented, and disclosed in the financial 
statements. This guidance requires the accounting and disclosure of tax 
positions taken or expected to be taken in the course of preparing our 
tax returns to determine whether the tax positions are “more likely than 
not” to be sustained by the applicable tax authority. We are required to 
analyze all open tax years, as defined by the statute of limitations, for 
all major jurisdictions, which includes U.S. federal and certain states.

Equity-Based Compensation

In 2013, we adopted the 2013 Hannon Armstrong Sustainable 
Infrastructure Capital, Inc. Equity Incentive Plan (as amended, the 
“2013  Plan”),  which  provides  for  grants  of  stock  options,  stock 
appreciation rights, restricted stock units, shares of restricted common 
stock, phantom shares, dividend equivalent rights, long-term incentive-
plan units (“LTIP units”) and other restricted limited partnership units 
issued by our Operating Partnership and other equity-based awards. 
From time to time, we may grant equity or equity based awards 
as compensation to our independent directors, employees, advisors, 
consultants and other personnel under our 2013 Plan. Certain awards 
earned under the plan are based on achieving various performance 
targets, which are generally earned between 0% and 200% of the 
initial target, depending on the extent to which the performance target 
is met. In addition to performance targets, certain LTIP units issued by 
our Operating Partnership also require a certain level of appreciation 
of partnership interests to occur before parity is reached and LTIP units 
can be converted to limited partnership units.

We  record  compensation  expense  for  grants  made  under  the 
2013 Plan in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation—Stock 
Compensation. We record compensation expense for unvested grants 
that vest solely based on service conditions on a straight-line basis 
over the vesting period of the entire award based upon the fair market 
value of the grant on the date of grant. Fair market value for restricted 
common stock is based on our share price on the date of grant. For 
awards where the vesting is contingent upon achievement of certain 
performance targets, compensation expense is measured based on the 
fair market value on the grant date and is recorded over the requisite 
service  period  (which  includes  the  performance  period).  Actual 
performance results at the end of the performance period determines 

the number of shares that will ultimately be awarded. We have also 
issued awards where the vesting is contingent upon service being 
provided for a defined period and certain market conditions being 
met. The fair value of these awards, as measured at the grant date, 
is recognized over the requisite service period, even if the market 
conditions are not met. The grant date fair value of these awards 
was developed by an independent appraiser using a Monte Carlo 
simulation.

Earnings Per Share

We compute earnings per share of common stock in accordance with 
ASC 260, Earnings Per Share. Basic earnings per share is calculated 
by dividing net income attributable to controlling stockholders (after 
consideration of the earnings allocated to unvested grants under the 
2013 Plan, if applicable) by the weighted-average number of shares 
of common stock outstanding during the period excluding the weighted 
average number of unvested grants under the 2013 Plan, if applicable 
(“participating securities” as defined in Note 12). Diluted earnings per 
share is calculated by dividing net income attributable to controlling 
stockholders (after consideration of the earnings allocated to unvested 
grants under the 2013 Plan, if applicable) by the weighted-average 
number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period plus 
other potential common stock instruments if they are dilutive. Other 
potentially dilutive common stock instruments include our unvested 
restricted stock, other equity-based awards, and convertible notes. The 
restricted stock and other equity-based awards are included if they 
are dilutive using the treasury stock method. The treasury stock method 
assumes that theoretical proceeds received for future service provided 
is used to purchase shares of treasury stock at the average market 
price per share of common stock, which is deducted from the total 
shares of potential common stock included in the calculation. When 
unvested grants are dilutive, the earnings allocated to these dilutive 
unvested grants are not deducted from the net income attributable to 
controlling stockholders when calculating diluted earnings per share. 
The convertible notes are included if they are dilutive using the if-
converted method. The if-converted method removes interest expense 
related to the convertible notes from the net income attributable to 
controlling stockholders and includes the weighted average shares of 
potential common stock over the period issuable upon conversion of 
the note. No adjustment is made for shares of potential common stock 
that are anti-dilutive during a period. 

Segment Reporting

We  make  equity  and  debt  investments  in  the  energy  efficiency, 
renewable energy, and other sustainable infrastructure markets. We 
manage our business as a single portfolio and report all of our activities 
as one business segment.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

Credit Losses
In June 2016, the FASB issued Topic 326 which significantly changes 
how entities will recognize and measure credit losses for most financial 
assets and certain other instruments that are not measured at fair 
value through net income. Topic 326 has replaced the “incurred loss” 
approach under existing guidance with an “expected loss” model for 
instruments measured at amortized cost and require entities to record 
allowances for expected losses from available-for-sale debt securities 
rather than reduce the amortized cost, as previously required. It also 

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simplified the accounting model for purchased credit-impaired debt 
securities and loans. Topic 326 is effective for fiscal years beginning 
after December 15, 2019 and was adopted through a cumulative-
effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the first 
reporting period in which the guidance is effective. Topic 326 became 
effective for us on January 1, 2020. As a result of the adoption of 
Topic 326, we recorded a cumulative-effect pre-tax adjustment to 
retained earnings as of January 1, 2020 of approximately $17 million 
in the process of establishing our allowance for our commercial 

receivables. The allowance for our government receivables recorded 
as of the adoption date of Topic 326 is not material. We did not 
have a material impact to the accounting for our available-for-sale 
securities portfolio. 

Other accounting standards updates issued before February 22, 2021 
and effective after December 31, 2020, are not expected to have a 
material effect on our consolidated financial statements and related 
disclosures.

Fair Value Measurements

3. 
Fair value is defined as the price that would be received for an asset 
or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market 
participants on the measurement date. The fair value accounting 
guidance provides a three-level hierarchy for classifying financial 
instruments. The levels of inputs used to determine the fair value of 
our financial assets and liabilities carried on the balance sheet at fair 
value and for those which only disclosure of fair value is required are 
characterized in accordance with the fair value hierarchy established 
by ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements. Where inputs for a financial 
asset or liability fall in more than one level in the fair value hierarchy, 
the financial asset or liability is classified in its entirety based on the 
lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement of 
that financial asset or liability. We use our judgment and consider 
factors specific to the financial assets and liabilities in determining 
the significance of an input to the fair value measurements. As of 
December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, only our residual 
assets related to our securitization trusts and investments were carried 
at fair value on the consolidated balance sheets on a recurring basis. 
The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are described below:

zz Level 1—Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets that are 

accessible at the measurement date.

zz Level 2—Observable prices that are based on inputs not quoted on 

active markets, but corroborated by market data.

zz Level 3—Unobservable inputs are used when little or no market 

data is available.

The tables below illustrate the estimated fair value of our financial 
instruments on our balance sheet. Unless otherwise discussed below, 
fair value for our Level 2 and Level 3 measurements is measured using 
a discounted cash flow model, contractual terms and inputs which 
consist of base interest rates and spreads over base rates which are 
based upon market observation and recent comparable transactions. 
An increase in these inputs would result in a lower fair value and a 
decline would result in a higher fair value. Our senior unsecured notes 
and convertible notes are valued using a market based approach and 
observable prices. The receivables held-for-sale, if any, are carried at 
the lower of cost or fair value. 

(in millions)

Assets

Government receivables

Commercial receivables

Investments(1)

Securitization residual assets(2)

Liabilities(3)

Credit facilities

Non-recourse debt 

Senior unsecured notes 

Convertible notes

As of December 31, 2020

Fair Value

Carrying Value

Level

$ 

282  $

1,018 

55 

159 

$

23  $

678 

1,362 

552 

248 

965 

55 

159 

23 

605 

1,299 

296 

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 2

Level 2

(1)  The amortized cost of our investments as of December 31, 2020, was $51 million.
(2)  Included in securitization assets on the consolidated balance sheet. This amount excludes securitization servicing assets, which are carried at amortized cost.
(3)  Fair value and carrying value exclude unamortized financing costs.

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(in millions)

Assets

Government receivables

Commercial receivables

Investments(1)

Securitization residual assets(2)

Liabilities(3)

Credit facilities

Non-recourse debt 

Senior unsecured notes 

Convertible notes

As of December 31, 2019

Fair Value

Carrying Value

Level

$ 

278  $

906 

75 

122 

$

31 $

739 

540 

185 

263

896 

75 

122 

31

716 

520 

152 

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 3

Level 2

Level 2

(1)  The amortized cost of our investments as of December 31, 2019, was $74 million.
(2)  Included in securitization assets on the consolidated balance sheet. This amount excludes securitization servicing assets which are carried at amortized cost.
(3)  Fair value and carrying value exclude unamortized financing costs.

Investments

The following table reconciles the beginning and ending balances for our Level 3 investments that are carried at fair value on a recurring basis:

(in millions)

Balance, beginning of period

Purchases of investments

Principal payments on investments

Sale of investments

Realized gains on investments recorded in gain on sale of receivables and investments

Unrealized gains (losses) on investments recorded in OCI

BALANCE, END OF PERIOD

The following table illustrates our investments in an unrealized loss position: 

For the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

$ 

75 $

40

(3)

(67)

6

4

$

55 $

170

46

(4)

(146)

5

4

75

(in millions)

December 31, 2020

December 31, 2019

Estimated Fair Value

Unrealized Losses(1)

Securities with a loss 
shorter than 12 months

Securities with a loss 
longer than 12 months

Securities with a loss 
shorter than 12 months

Securities with a loss 
longer than 12 months

$ 

—  $

25

$ 

6

8

— $

0.4

0.3

0.7

(1)  Loss position is due to interest rates movements. We have the intent and ability to hold these investments until a recovery of fair value.

In determining the fair value of our investments, we used a market-based risk-free rate and a range of interest rate spreads of approximately  
1% to 4% based upon transactions involving similar assets as of December 31, 2020 and 2019. The weighted average discount rates used 
to determine the fair value of our investments as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 were 3.2% and 4.4%, respectively.

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Securitization residual assets

The following table reconciles the beginning and ending balances for our Level 3 securitization residual assets that are carried at fair value on 
a recurring basis:

(in millions)

Balance, beginning of period

Accretion of securitization residual assets

Additions to securitization residual assets

Collections of securitization residual assets

Sales of securitization residual assets

Unrealized gains (losses) on securitization residual assets recorded in OCI

For the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

$ 

122 $

6 

54 

(11)

(21)

9 

71

4 

59 

(7)

(13)

8 

122

BALANCE, END OF PERIOD

$

159 $

In determining the fair value of our securitization residual assets, we used a market-based risk-free rate and a range of interest rate spreads of 
approximately 1% to 5% based upon transactions involving similar assets as of December 31, 2020 and 2019. The weighted average discount 
rate used to determine the fair value of our securitization residual assets as of December 31, 2020 and 2019 was 3.8% and 4.4%, respectively.

Non-recurring Fair Value Measurements

Our financial statements may include non-recurring fair value measurements related to acquisitions and non-monetary transactions, if any. Assets 
acquired in a business combination are recorded at their fair value. We may use third party valuation firms to assist us with developing our 
estimates of fair value.

Concentration of Credit Risk

Government and commercial receivables, real estate leases, and debt investments consist primarily of U.S. federal government-backed receivables, 
investment grade state and local government receivables and receivables from various sustainable infrastructure projects and do not, in our view, 
represent a significant concentration of credit risk. Additionally, certain of our investments are collateralized by projects concentrated in certain 
geographic regions throughout the United States. These investments typically have structural credit protections to mitigate our risk exposure and, 
in most cases, the projects are insured for estimated physical loss which helps to mitigate the possible risk from these concentrations. 

We had cash deposits that are subject to credit risk as shown below:

(in millions)

Cash deposits

Restricted cash deposits (included in other assets)

TOTAL CASH DEPOSITS

Amount of cash deposits in excess of amounts federally insured

December 31,

2020

2019

$ 

$

$

286 $

24

310 $

309 $

6

101

107

105

Non-Controlling Interest

4. 
Units of limited partnership interests in the Operating Partnership 
(“OP units”) that are owned by limited partners other than us are 
included in non-controlling interest on our consolidated balance sheets. 
The non-controlling interest holders are generally allocated their pro rata 
share of income, other comprehensive income and equity transactions.

 The outstanding OP units held by outside limited partners represent less 
than 1% of our outstanding OP units and are redeemable by the limited 
partners for cash, or at our option, for a like number of shares of our 
common stock. Non-controlling interest holders exchanged 57,400 
OP units for the same number of shares of common stock during the 
year ended December 31, 2020. OP units of 3,703 were exchanged 

for the same number of shares of our common stock during the year 
ended December 31, 2019. 

We have also granted to members of our leadership team and directors 
LTIP Units pursuant to the 2013 plan. These LTIP Units are held by HASI 
Management HoldCo LLC. The LTIP Units are designed to qualify as 
profits interests in the Operating Partnership and initially will have a 
capital account balance of zero and, therefore, will not have full parity 
with OP units with respect to liquidating distributions or other rights. 
However, the amended and restated agreement of limited partnership 
of the Operating Partnership (the “OP Agreement”) provides that “book 
gains,” or economic appreciation, in the Operating Partnership will be 

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allocated first to the LTIP Units until the capital account per LTIP Units is 
equal to the capital account per-unit of the OP units. Under the terms 
of the OP Agreement, the Operating Partnership will revalue its assets 
upon the occurrence of certain specified events, and any increase in 
valuation from the time of grant until such event will be allocated first 
to the holders of LTIP Units to equalize the capital accounts of such 

holders with the capital accounts of OP unit holders. Once this has 
occurred, the LTIP Units will achieve full parity with the OP units for 
all purposes, including with respect to liquidating distributions and 
redemption rights. In addition to these attributes, there are vesting 
and settlement conditions similar to our other equity-based awards as 
discussed in Notes 2 and 11.

Securitization of Financial Assets
5. 
The following summarizes certain transactions with securitization trusts:

(in millions)

Gains on securitizations

Cost of financial assets securitized

Proceeds from securitizations

Residual and servicing assets

Cash received from residual and servicing assets

In connection with securitization transactions, we typically retain servicing 
responsibilities and residual assets. We generally receive annual 
servicing fees of typically up to 0.20% of the outstanding balance. We 
may periodically make servicer advances, which are subject to credit 
risk. Included in securitization assets in our consolidated balance sheets 
are our servicing assets at amortized cost, our residual assets at fair 
value, and our servicing advances at cost, if any. Our residual assets are 
subordinate to investors’ interests, and their values are subject to credit, 
prepayment and interest rate risks on the transferred financial assets. 
Other than these residual assets, the investors and the securitization 
trusts have no recourse to our other assets for failure of debtors to pay 
when due. In computing gains and losses on securitizations, we use 
discount rates based on a review of comparable market transactions 
including Level 3 unobservable inputs which consist of base interest 
rates and spreads over these base rates. Depending on the nature of 
the transaction risks, the discount rate ranged from 2% to 8%.

As of December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, our Managed 
Assets totaled $7.2 billion and $6.2 billion, respectively, of which 

Our Portfolio

6. 
As of December 31, 2020, our Portfolio included approximately 
$2.9 billion of equity method investments, receivables, real estate 
and investments on our balance sheet. The equity method investments 
represent our non-controlling equity investments in renewable energy 
and  energy  efficiency  projects  and  land.  The  receivables  and 
investments are typically collateralized by contractually committed debt 
obligations of government entities or private high credit quality obligors 
and are often supported by additional forms of credit enhancement, 
including security interests and supplier guaranties. The real estate is 
typically land and related lease intangibles for long-term leases to 
wind and solar projects. Our analysis of our Portfolio has historically 
been analyzed by type of obligor categorized as either government 
or commercial obligors and whether those obligors are investment 
grade or non-investment grade. In conjunction with the adoption of 
Topic 326, we re-evaluated our reporting for this disclosure and have 
modified our credit quality disclosure to provide more detail of how 

As of and for the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$ 

50 $

24 $

292 

342 

164 

12 

853

877 

124 

7 

33

688 

721 

72 

3 

$4.3 billion and $4.1 billion, respectively, were securitized assets 
held in unconsolidated securitization trusts. There were no securitization 
credit losses in the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, or 
2018. As of December 31, 2020, there were no material payments 
from debtors to the securitization trusts that were greater than 90 days 
past due.

Receivables from contracts for the installation of energy efficiency 
and other technologies are $100 million of our securitization residual 
assets. These technologies are installed in facilities owned by, or 
operated for or by, federal, state or local government entities where 
the ultimate obligor for the receivable is a governmental entity. The 
contracts may have guarantees of energy savings from third-party 
service providers, which typically are entities rated investment grade 
by an independent rating agency. The remainder of our securitization 
residual assets are related to contracts where the underlying cash flows 
are secured by an interest in real estate which are typically senior in 
terms of repayment to other financings.

the assets in our Portfolio are performing. Additionally, as discussed in 
Note 2, we have adopted Topic 326 which requires the establishment 
of an allowance at origination for our receivables expected over the 
life of the asset rather than at the time it is probable that a loss has been 
incurred. These allowances are reflected in our disclosures below and 
are not necessarily an indication that an actual loss has been incurred.  

We  determine  our  expectation  of  credit  losses  related  to  our 
investments by evaluating a number of qualitative and quantitative 
credit criteria including a project’s operating results, loan-to-value ratio, 
any cash reserves, the ability of expected cash from operations to 
cover the cash flow requirements currently and into the future, key 
terms of the transaction, the ability of the borrower to refinance the 
transaction, the financial and operating capability of the borrower, 
its sponsors or the obligor as well as any guarantors and the project’s 
collateral value. In addition, when deriving our reasonable and 
supportable forecasts we consider the overall economic environment, 

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the sustainable infrastructure sector, the effect of local, industry, and 
broader economic factors, the impact of any variation in weather and 

the historical and anticipated trends in interest rates, defaults and loss 
severities for similar transactions.

The following is an analysis of the Performance Ratings of our Portfolio as of December 31, 2020, which is assessed quarterly:

(dollars in millions)

Receivable vintage

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

Prior to 2016

Total receivables

Less: Allowance for loss on receivables

Net receivables(4)

Investments

Real estate

Equity method investments(5)

TOTAL

Percent of Portfolio

Average remaining balance(6)

Portfolio Performance

Government

Commercial

1(1)

1(1)

2(2)

3(3)

Total

$

—  $

184  $

—  $

—  $

— 

— 

39 

68 

141 

248 

— 

248 

35 

— 

— 

423 

269 

1 

60 

47 

984 

(24)

960 

20 

359 

1,255 

2 

— 

8 

— 

— 

10 

(4)

6 

— 

— 

25 

— 

— 

— 

— 

8 

8 

(8)

— 

— 

— 

— 

$

$

283  $

2,594  $

10%

7  $

89%

14  $

31  $

1%

12  $

—  $

—%

4  $

184 

425 

269 

48 

128 

196 

1,250 

(36)

1,214 

55 

359 

1,280 

2,908 

100%

12 

(1)  This category includes our assets where based on our credit criteria and performance to date we believe that our risk of not receiving our invested capital remains low.
(2)  This category includes our assets where based on our credit criteria and performance to date we believe there is a moderate level of risk to not receiving some or all of 

our invested capital. 

(3)  This category includes our assets where based on our credit criteria and performance to date, we believe there is substantial doubt regarding our ability to recover 
some or all of our invested capital. Included in this category are two commercial receivables with a combined total carrying value of approximately $8 million as of 
December 31, 2020 which we have held on non-accrual status since 2017. We expect to continue to pursue our legal claims with regards to these assets.

(4)  Total reconciles to the total of the government receivables and commercial receivables lines of the consolidated balance sheets
(5)  Some of the individual projects included in portfolios that make up our equity method investments have government off-takers. As they are part of large portfolios, they 

are not classified separately. 

(6)  Average remaining balance is calculated gross of allowance for loss on receivables per transaction and excludes approximately 143 transactions each with outstanding 

balances that are less than $1 million and that in the aggregate total $56 million.

Receivables 

We adopted Topic 326 during the year ended December 31, 2020 
which requires us to recognize a provision for loss on receivables 
expected over the life of the receivable rather than only recording 
an allowance when it is probable a loss has been incurred. As of 
December 31, 2019, we had an allowance for loss on receivables on 
specific assets of $8 million discussed above with a Performance Rating 
of 3. At adoption on January 1, 2020, we recorded an additional pre-
tax allowance for loss on receivables of $17 million which reflects our 
estimated loss as of that date. Quarterly, we update that expected loss 

to reflect both the expected loss on newly originated receivables and 
any changes in the expected loss on existing receivables. During the 
year ended December 31, 2020, we increased the allowance on our 
receivables by $10 million primarily as a result of additional loans and 
loan commitments made during this period. While macroeconomic 
indicators we consider in our analyses including unemployment rates 
and power prices degraded over the year ended December 31, 
2020, we have not seen these factors translate to material default 
rates, and the contracted nature of many of our assets protects us from 
low spot energy prices. 

Below is a summary of the carrying value, expected loan funding commitments, and allowance by type of receivable or “Portfolio Segment,” 
as defined by Topic 326, as of December 31, 2020 and January 1, 2020:

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(in millions)

Government(1)

Commercial(2)

TOTAL

December 31, 2020

January 1, 2020

Gross Carrying
Value

Loan Funding
Commitments

Allowance

Gross Carrying
Value

Loan Funding
Commitments

Allowance

$

$

248  $

—  $

— 

$

263  $

—  $

1,002 

1,250 

282 

282 

36 

36 

$

904 

1,167 

57 

57 

— 

26 

26 

(1)  As  of  December  31,  2020,  our  government  receivables  include  $145  million  of  U.S.  federal  government  transactions  and  $104  million  of  transactions  where  the 

ultimate obligors are state or local governments.  
Risk characteristics of our government receivables include the energy savings or the power output of the projects and the ability of the government obligor to generate 
revenue  for  debt  service,  via  taxation  or  other  means.  Transactions  may  have  guarantees  of  energy  savings  or  other  performance  support  from  third-party  service 
providers,  which  typically  are  entities,  directly  or  whose  ultimate  parent  entity  is,  rated  investment  grade  by  an  independent  rating  agency.  All  of  our  government 
receivables are included in Performance Rating 1 in the Portfolio Performance table above. Our allowance for government receivables is primarily calculated by using 
PD/LGD methods as discussed in Note 2. Our expectation of credit losses for these receivables is immaterial given the high credit-quality of the obligors. 

(2)  As of December 31, 2020, this category of assets includes, gross of allowance, $505 million of mezzanine loans made on a non-recourse basis to special purpose 
subsidiaries of residential solar companies which are secured by residential solar assets where we rely on certain limited indemnities, warranties, and other obligations 
of the residential solar companies or their other subsidiaries. Approximately $408 million of our commercial receivables are loans made to entities in which we also have 
non-controlling equity investments of approximately $23 million. This total also includes $111 million of lease agreements where we hold legal title to the underlying real 
estate which are treated under GAAP as receivables since they were deemed to be failed sale/leaseback transactions as described in Note 2. 
Risk characteristics of our commercial receivables include a project’s operating risks, which include the impact of the overall economic environment, the sustainable 
infrastructure sector, the effect of local, industry, and broader economic factors, the impact of any variation in weather and trends in interest rates. We use assumptions 
related to these risks to estimate an allowance using a discounted cash flow analysis or the PD/LGD method as discussed in Note 2. All of our commercial receivables 
are included in Performance Rating 1 in the Portfolio Performance table above, except for $10 million of receivables included in Performance Category 2 and the 
$8  million  of  receivables  we  have  placed  on  non-accrual  status  which  are  included  in  Performance  Rating  3.  For  those  assets  in  Performance  Rating  1,  the  credit 
worthiness of the obligor combined with the various structural protections of our assets cause us to believe we have a low risk we will not receive our invested capital, 
however we recorded a $24 million allowance on these $984 million in assets as a result of lower probability assumptions utilized in our allowance methodology.

The following table reconciles our beginning and ending allowance for loss on receivables by Portfolio Segment for the year ended 
December 31, 2020:

(in millions)

Beginning balance—January 1, 2020

Provision for loss on receivables

Ending balance—December 31, 2020

Government

Commercial

$ 

$

—  $

— 

—  $

26 

10 

36 

Other than the $8 million of receivables discussed above with a Performance Rating of 3, we have no receivables which are on non-accrual status. 

The following table provides a summary of our anticipated maturity dates of our receivables and the weighted average yield for each range 
of maturities as of December 31, 2020:

(dollars in millions)

Maturities by period (excluding allowance)

Weighted average yield by period

Total

Less than 
1 year

1-5 years

5-10 years

More than 
10 years

$

1,250 $

8.2%

24 $

9.9%

134 $

6.7%

301 $

9.2%

791

7.6%

Investments
The following table provides a summary of our anticipated maturity dates of our investments and the weighted average yield for each range 
of maturities as of December 31, 2020:

(dollars in millions)

Maturities by period

Weighted average yield by period

Total

$

Less than 
1 year

1-5 years

5-10 years

More than 
10 years

55 $

4.1%

— $

—%

— $

—%

— $

—%

55

4.1%

We had no investments that were impaired or on non-accrual status as of December 31, 2020 or 2019, and no allowances associated with 
our investments. 

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Real Estate
Our real estate is leased to renewable energy projects, typically under long-term triple net leases with expiration dates that range between the 
years 2033 and 2057 under the initial terms and 2047 and 2080 if all renewals are exercised. The components of our real estate portfolio 
as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, were as follows:

(in millions)

Real estate

Land

Lease intangibles

Accumulated amortization of lease intangibles

REAL ESTATE

December 31,

2020

2019

$

$

269  $

104 

(14)

359  $

269 

104 

(11)

362 

As of December 31, 2020, the future amortization expense of the intangible assets and the future minimum rental income payments under our 
land lease agreements are as follows:

(in millions)

Year Ending December 31,

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

Thereafter

TOTAL

Future Amortization 
Expense

Minimum Rental 
Payments

$

$

3  $

3 

3 

3 

3 

75 

90  $

22 

22 

23 

24 

24 

741 

856 

Equity Method Investments
We have made non-controlling equity investments in a number of renewable energy and energy efficiency projects as well as in a joint venture 
that owns land with long-term triple net lease agreements to several solar projects that we account for as equity method investments. As of 
December 31, 2020, we held the following equity method investments:

Investee

Carrying Value

(in millions) 
Investment Date 

Various

Jupiter Equity Holdings, LLC

December 2020

Lighthouse Partnerships(1)

March 2020

University of Iowa Energy Collaborative Holdings LLC

December 2015

Buckeye Wind Energy Class B Holdings, LLC

Various

Various

Vivint Solar Asset 2 Class B, LLC

Other investees

TOTAL EQUITY METHOD INVESTMENTS

(1)  Represents a portfolio of interests in renewable energy projects discussed below.

$

$

465 

201 

118 

72 

66 

358 

1,280 

Jupiter Equity Holdings, LLC

On  July  1,  2020,  we  acquired  a  preferred  equity  interest  in 
Jupiter Equity Holdings, LLC (“Jupiter”) that is expected to own an 
approximately 2.3 gigawatt portfolio of renewable energy projects. 
We  have  agreed  to  guarantee  certain  of  the  obligations  of  the 
subsidiary in connection with these agreements. To date, we have 
made capital contributions to Jupiter of approximately $467 million 

related to eight operating wind projects and two operating solar 
projects with an aggregate capacity of approximately 2.1 gigawatts. 
We expect to ultimately invest approximately $540 million in Jupiter 
by making additional periodic capital contributions related to three 
more projects anticipated to be commercially operational on or prior 
to June 30, 2021, at which time the additional projects relating to 
a specific funding will be transferred into Jupiter. Assuming all of the 

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projects are acquired by Jupiter, the renewables portfolio will consist 
of 13 projects (nine onshore wind projects and four utility-scale solar 
projects) and will feature cash flows from fixed-price power purchase 
agreements and financial hedges with a weighted average contract 
life of 13 years, contracted with highly creditworthy off-takers and 
counterparties.

Jupiter is governed by an amended and restated limited liability 
company agreement, dated July 1, 2020, by and among Jupiter, one 
of our subsidiaries and a subsidiary of the project sponsor who serves 
as managing member, and contains customary terms and conditions. 
We own 100% of the Class A Units in Jupiter corresponding to 49% 
of the distributions from Jupiter subject to the preferences discussed 
below. Most major decisions that may impact Jupiter, its subsidiaries 
or its assets, require the majority vote of a four person committee in 
which we and the project sponsor each have two representatives. 
Through Jupiter, we will be entitled to preferred distributions until certain 
return targets are achieved. Once these return targets are achieved, 
then distributions will be allocated approximately 33% to us and 
approximately 67% to the sponsor. We and the sponsor each have a 
right of first offer if the other party desires to transfer any of its equity 
ownership to a third party on or after July 1, 2023. We use the equity 
method of accounting to account for our preferred equity interest in 
Jupiter, and have elected to recognize earnings from this investment 
one quarter in arrears to allow for the receipt of financial information.

Lighthouse Renewables Portfolio

In December 2020, we entered into certain agreements relating 
to the acquisition, ownership and management of approximately 
$663 million in preferred cash equity investments in three partnerships 
(the “Lighthouse Partnerships”) that expect to own cash equity interests 
in an approximately 1.6 gigawatt portfolio of onshore wind, utility-

scale solar and solar-plus-storage projects (the “Renewables Portfolio”) 
developed and managed by the project sponsor. We have made 
initial investments in the preferred cash equity interests of the Lighthouse 
Partnerships of approximately $200 million in 2020 and additional 
investments are expected to be made in 2021 and 2022 as the projects 
become commercially operational. The Renewables Portfolio currently 
has contracted cash flows with a combined weighted average contract 
life of greater than 14 years with a diversified group of predominately 
investment grade corporate, utility, university, and municipal offtakers. 

Each  Lighthouse  Partnership  governed  by  a  limited  liability 
company agreement by and among us and the sponsor serving as 
managing member that will contain customary terms and conditions. 
Most  major  decisions  that  may  impact  each  of  the  Lighthouse 
Partnerships, its subsidiaries or its assets, require a unanimous vote 
of the representatives present at a meeting of a review committee in 
which a quorum is present. The review committee is a four person 
committee, which includes two Company representatives and two 
sponsor  representatives.  Through  each  Lighthouse  Partnership, 
commencing on a certain date following the effective date of the 
applicable limited liability company agreement, we will be entitled to 
preferred distributions until certain return targets are achieved. Subject 
to customary exceptions, no member of a Lighthouse Partnership can 
transfer any of its equity ownership in any Lighthouse Partnership to a 
third party without approval of the review committee of that Lighthouse 
Partnership. We use the equity method of accounting to account for 
its preferred equity interest in each Lighthouse Partnership, and have 
elected to recognize earnings from this investment one quarter in 
arrears to allow for the receipt of financial information. 

Based  on  an  evaluation  of  our  equity  method  investments  we 
determined that no OTTI had occurred as of December 31, 2020, 
2019, or 2018.

7. 

Credit Facilities

Senior Credit Facilities

We have two senior revolving credit facilities (our “Senior Credit Facilities”), a representation-based loan agreement (the “Rep-Based Facility”) and 
an approval-based loan agreement (the “Approval-Based Facility”) with various lenders, which mature in July 2023. The Rep-Based Facility is a 
senior secured revolving limited-recourse credit facility with a maximum outstanding principal amount of $250 million and the Approval-Based 
Facility is a senior secured revolving recourse credit facility with a maximum outstanding principal amount of $200 million. 

The following table provides additional detail on our Senior Credit Facilities as of December 31, 2020: 

(dollars in millions)

Outstanding balance

Value of collateral pledged to credit facility

Weighted average short-term borrowing rate

Rep-Based  
Facility

Approval-Based 
Facility

$ 

—  $

25

N/A

23

151

1.7%

Loans under the Rep-Based Facility bear interest at a rate equal to 
one-month LIBOR plus 1.40% or 1.85% (depending on the type of 
collateral) or, in certain circumstances, the Federal Funds Rate plus 
0.40% or 0.85% (depending on the type of collateral) and loans under 
the Approval-Based Facility bear interest at a rate equal to one-month 

LIBOR plus 1.50% or 2.00% (depending on the type of collateral) or, 
under certain circumstances, the Federal Funds Rate plus 0.50% or 
1.00% (depending on the type of collateral). 

Inclusion of any financings of the Company in the borrowing base as 
collateral under the Rep-Based Facility will be subject to the Company 

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making certain agreed upon representations and warranties. We 
have provided a limited guarantee covering the accuracy of the 
representations and warranties, and the repayment by the borrowers 
of certain amounts relating to any such financing is the exclusive remedy 
with respect to any breach of such representations and warranties under 
the Rep-Based Facility. Inclusion of any financings of the Company in 
the borrowing base as collateral under the Approval-Based Facility will 
be subject to the approval of a super-majority of the lenders, and we 
have provided a guarantee of the Approval-Based Facility.

The amount eligible to be drawn under the facilities is based on a 
discount to the value of each included investment based upon the 
type of collateral or an applicable valuation percentage. The sum of 
included financings after taking into account the applicable valuation 
percentages and any changes in the valuation of the financings in 

accordance with the Loan Agreements determines the borrowing 
capacity, subject to the overall facility limits described above. Under 
the Rep-Based Facility, the applicable valuation percentage is 85% in 
the case of a land-lease obligor or a U.S. Federal Government obligor, 
80% in the case of an institutional obligor or state and local obligor, 
and with respect to other obligors or in certain circumstances, such 
other percentage as the administrative agent may prescribe. Under 
the Approval-Based Facility, the applicable valuation percentage is 
85% in the case of certain approved financings and 67% or such 
other percentage as the administrative agent may prescribe, including 
in the case of one asset, an agreed-upon amortization schedule. The 
stated minimum maturities to be paid under the amortization schedule 
to meet the required target loan balances as of December 31, 2020 
are as follows: 

(in millions)

For the year ended December 31,  

2021

2022

2023

TOTAL

Future Minimum Maturities

$

$

—

8

15

23

We have approximately $5 million of remaining unamortized financing 
costs associated with the credit facilities that have been capitalized and 
included in other assets on our balance sheet and are being amortized 
on a straight-line basis over the term of the credit facilities. Administrative 
fees are payable annually to the administrative agent under each of the 
Loan Agreements and letter agreements with the administrative agent. 
Under the Rep-Based Facility, we pay to the administrative agent on 
each monthly payment date, for the benefit of the lenders, certain 
availability fees for the Rep-Based Facility equal to 0.60%, divided by 
365 or 366, as applicable, multiplied by the excess of the available 
total commitments under the Rep-Based Loan Agreement over the actual 
amount borrowed under the Rep-Based Facility.

The  credit  facilities  contain  terms,  conditions,  covenants,  and 
representations and warranties that are customary and typical for a 

Unsecured Credit Facility
In February 2021, we entered into an unsecured credit facility with a 
maximum outstanding principal amount of $50 million which matures 
in February 2022. The unsecured credit facility has a commitment 
fee based on our current credit rating and bears interest at a rate of 
the LIBOR or prime rate plus applicable margins based on our current 
credit rating, which may be adjusted downward up to 0.05% to the 
extent our Portfolio achieves certain targeted levels of carbon emissions 
reductions. As of the inception of the unsecured credit facility, the 
applicable margins are 2.25% for LIBOR-based loans and 1.25% for 
prime rate-based loans. The unsecured credit facility contains terms, 
conditions, covenants, and representations and warranties that are 

transaction of this nature, including various affirmative and negative 
covenants, and limitations on the incurrence of liens and indebtedness, 
investments,  fundamental  organizational  changes,  dispositions, 
changes in the nature of business, transactions with affiliates, use of 
proceeds and stock repurchases. We were in compliance with our 
covenants as of December 31, 2020.

The credit facilities also include customary events of default, including 
the existence of a default in more than 50% of underlying financings. 
The occurrence of an event of default may result in termination of the 
credit facilities, acceleration of amounts due under the credit facilities, 
and accrual of default interest at a rate of LIBOR plus 2.00% in the 
case of both the Rep-Based Facility and the Approval-Based Facility.

customary and typical for a transaction of this nature, including various 
affirmative and negative covenants, and limitations on the incurrence 
of liens and indebtedness, investments, fundamental organizational 
changes, dispositions, changes in the nature of business, transactions 
with affiliates, use of proceeds, stock repurchases, and dividends 
we can declare. The unsecured credit facility also includes customer 
events of default, which may result in the Company having to post 
cash collateral equal to 102% of any amounts of outstanding letters 
of credit drawn on the unsecured credit facility.  At our option, upon 
maturity of the facility, we have the ability to convert amounts borrowed 
into term loans for a fee equal to 2.25% of the term loans. 

8 8  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

8. 

Long-Term Debt

Non-Recourse Debt

We have outstanding the following asset-backed non-recourse debt and bank loans:

(dollars in millions)

2020

2019

Outstanding Balance  
as of December 31,

Interest 
Rate(1)

Maturity Date

Anticipated 
Balance at 
Maturity

Carrying Value of
Assets Pledged
as of December 31,

2020

2019

Description of Assets Pledged

$

81  $

85 

4.28%  October 2034

$

— $

134 $

126 Receivables, real estate and real 

HASI Sustainable Yield Bond 
2015-1A

HASI Sustainable Yield Bond 
2015-1B Note

13 

13 

5.41% October 2034

2017 Credit Agreement(2)

— 

61 

4.12% January 2023

HASI SYB Loan Agreement 
2015-2(3)

HASI SYB Trust 2016-2

HASI ECON 101 Trust

HASI SYB Trust 2017-1

— 

28 

N/A December 2023

67 

126 

150 

72 

129 

155 

4.35% April 2037

3.57% May 2041

3.86% March 2042

Lannie Mae Series 2019-1

95 

96 

3.68% January 2047

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

— 

estate intangibles

134 

126  Class B Bond of HASI Sustainable 

Yield Bond 2015-1

— 

— 

71 

133 

205 

120  Equity interests in Strong Upwind 
Holdings I, II, III, and IV LLC, and 
Northern Frontier Wind, LLC

73  Equity interest in Buckeye Wind 
Energy Class B Holdings LLC

76  Receivables

135  Receivables and investments

206  Receivables, real estate and real 

estate intangibles

107 

106  Receivables, real estate and real 

estate intangibles

Other non-recourse debt(4)

Unamortized financing costs

73 

(12)

77  3.15%–7.45% 2022 to 2032

18 

73 

77  Receivables

(16)

NON-RECOURSE DEBT(5)

$

593  $

700 

(1)  Represents the interest rate as of December 31, 2020.
(2)  This loan was prepaid in January 2020.
(3)  This loan was prepaid in September 2020. 
(4)  Other non-recourse debt consists of various debt agreements used to finance certain of our receivables for their term. Scheduled debt service payment requirements are 

equal to or less than the cash flows received from the underlying receivables.

(5)  The  total  collateral  pledged  against  our  non-recourse  debt  was  $723  million  and  $921  million  as  of  December  31,  2020  and  December  31,  2019,  respectively. 
In  addition,  $23  million  and  $24  million  of  our  restricted  cash  balance  was  pledged  as  collateral  to  various  non-recourse  loans  as  of  December  31,  2020  and 
December 31, 2019, respectively.

We have pledged the financed assets, and typically our interests in 
one or more parents or subsidiaries of the borrower that are legally 
separate bankruptcy remote special purpose entities as security for 
the non-recourse debt. There is no recourse for repayment of these 
obligations other than to the applicable borrower and any collateral 
pledged as security for the obligations. Generally, the assets and credit 
of these entities are not available to satisfy any of our other debts and 
obligations. The creditors can only look to the borrower, the cash flows 
of the pledged assets and any other collateral pledged, to satisfy the 
debt and we are not otherwise liable for nonpayment of such cash 
flows. The debt agreements contain terms, conditions, covenants, 
and representations and warranties that are customary and typical 
for transactions of this nature, including limitations on the incurrence 
of liens and indebtedness, investments, fundamental organizational 
changes, dispositions, changes in the nature of business, transactions 
with affiliates, use of proceeds and stock repurchases. The agreements 

also include customary events of default, the occurrence of which 
may result in termination of the agreements, acceleration of amounts 
due, and accrual of default interest. We typically act as servicer for 
the debt transactions. We are in compliance with all covenants as of 
December 31, 2020 and 2019.

We have guaranteed the accuracy of certain of the representations 
and warranties and other obligations of certain of our subsidiaries 
under certain of the debt agreements and provided an indemnity 
against certain losses from “bad acts” of such subsidiaries including 
fraud, failure to disclose a material fact, theft, misappropriation, 
voluntary bankruptcy or unauthorized transfers. In the case of the 
debt secured by certain of our renewable energy equity interests, we 
have also guaranteed the compliance of our subsidiaries with certain 
tax matters and certain obligations if our joint venture partners exercise 
their right to withdraw from our partnerships.

|  8 9

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

The stated minimum maturities of non-recourse debt as of December 31, 2020, were as follows:

(in millions)

Year Ending December 31,

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

Thereafter

Total minimum maturities

Unamortized financing costs

TOTAL NON-RECOURSE DEBT

Future minimum maturities

$

$

29 

27 

30 

34 

31 

454 

605 

(12)

593 

The stated minimum maturities of non-recourse debt above include 
only the mandatory minimum principal payments. To the extent there 
are additional cash flows received from our investments in renewable 
energy projects serving as collateral for certain of our non-recourse 
debt facilities, these additional cash flows are required to be used 
to make additional principal payments against the respective debt. 
Any additional principal payments made due to these provisions 
may impact the anticipated balance at maturity of these financings. 
To the extent there are not sufficient cash flows received from those 
investments pledged as collateral, the investor has no recourse against 
other corporate assets to recover any shortfalls. 

Senior Unsecured Notes

We have outstanding senior unsecured notes issued jointly by certain 
of our TRS and are guaranteed by the Company and certain other 
subsidiaries (the “Senior Unsecured Notes”). The Senior Unsecured 
Notes are subject to covenants which limit our ability to incur additional 
indebtedness and require us to maintain unencumbered assets of not 
less than 120% of our unsecured debt. These covenants will terminate 
on any date at which the Senior Unsecured Notes have been rated 
investment grade by two of the three major credit rating agencies 
and no event of default has occurred. We are in compliance with all 
of our covenants as of December 31, 2020 and 2019. The Senior 
Unsecured Notes impose certain requirements in the event that we 
merge with or sell substantially all of our assets to another entity. 
The proceeds of our Senior Unsecured Notes are used to acquire 
or refinance, in whole or in part, eligible green projects, including 
assets which are neutral to negative on incremental carbon emissions.

The following are summarized terms of the Senior Unsecured Notes:

(in millions)

2024 Notes

2025 Notes

2030 Notes

Outstanding  
Principal Amount

Maturity Date

Stated  
Interest Rate

Interest Payment Dates

Redemption Terms 
Modification Date

$

500(1)

July 15, 2024

400 

April 15, 2025

375(3)  September 15, 2030

5.25%

6.00%

3.75%

January 15th and July 15th

July 15, 2021(2)

April 15th and October 15th

April 15, 2022(2)

February 15th and August 15th September 15, 2022(4)

(1)  The first $350 million issuance of 2024 Notes was priced at par. We subsequently issued $150 million of the $500 million aggregate principal amount of the 2024 

Notes for total proceeds of $157 million ($155 million net of issuance costs) at an effective interest rate of 4.13%.

(2)  Prior to this date, we may redeem, at our option, some or all of the 2024 Notes or 2025 Notes for the outstanding principal amount plus the applicable “make-whole” 
premium as defined in the indenture governing the 2024 Notes or 2025 Notes plus accrued and unpaid interest through the redemption date. In addition, prior to this 
date, we may redeem up to 40% of the Senior Unsecured Notes using the proceeds of certain equity offerings at a price equal to par plus the coupon percentage of the 
principal amount thereof, plus accrued but unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the applicable redemption date. On, or subsequent to, this date we may redeem 
the 2024 or 2025 Notes in whole or in part at redemption prices defined in the indenture governing the 2024 Notes or 2025 Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest 
though the redemption date. 

(3)  We issued the $375 million aggregate principal amount of the 2030 Notes for total proceeds of $371 million ($367 million net of issuance costs) at an effective interest 

rate of 3.87%.

(4)  Prior to this date, we may, at our option on one or more occasions redeem up to 40% of the 2030 Notes using the proceeds of certain equity offerings at a price equal 
to 103.75% of the principal amount thereof; plus accrued but unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding the applicable redemption date. At any point prior to maturity, 
we may redeem, at our option, some or all of the 2030 Notes plus the applicable “make-whole” premium as defined in the indenture governing the 2030 Notes plus 
accrued and unpaid interest through the redemption date.

9 0  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

The following table presents a summary of the components of the Senior Unsecured Notes: 

(in millions)

Principal

Accrued interest

Unamortized premium

Less: Unamortized financing costs

CARRYING VALUE OF SENIOR UNSECURED NOTES

Interest expense

Convertible Senior Notes

As of and for the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

$

$

$

1,275  $

22 

2 

(16)

1,283  $

49  $

500 

13 

7 

(8)

512 

12 

We have outstanding $294 million aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes (“Convertible Senior Notes”), including $144 million 
of principal amount convertible senior notes due August 15, 2023 issued in August 2020 at a stated interest rate of 0%. Holders may convert 
any of their convertible notes into shares of our common stock at the applicable conversion ratio at any time prior to the close of business on 
the second scheduled trading day immediately preceding the maturity date, unless the convertible notes have been previously redeemed or 
repurchased by us.

The following are summarized terms of the Convertible Senior Notes as of December 31, 2020:

(in millions)

Outstanding 
Principal 
Amount

Maturity Date

Stated Interest 
Rate

Interest 
Payment Dates

Conversion 
Ratio

Conversion 
Price

Issuable  
Shares

Dividend 
Threshold 
Amount(1)

2022 Convertible Notes

$

150 September 1, 2022

4.125%  March 1 and 
September 1

36.7680 $

27.20

5.5 $

0.33

2023 Convertible Notes

144

August 15, 2023

0.000% 

N/A 20.6779 $

48.36

3.0 $

0.34

(1)  The conversion ratio is subject to adjustment for dividends declared above these amounts per share per quarter and certain other events that may be dilutive to the holder. 

For both the 2022 Convertible Notes and the 2023 Convertible 
Notes, following the occurrence of a make-whole fundamental change, 
we will, in certain circumstances, increase the conversion rate for a 
holder that converts its convertible notes in connection with such make-
whole fundamental change. There are no cash settlement provisions 
in the convertible notes and the conversion option can only be settled 
through physical delivery of our common stock. Additionally, upon the 
occurrence of certain fundamental changes involving us, holders of 
the convertible notes may require us to redeem all or a portion of their 
convertible notes for cash at a price of 100% of the principal amount 
outstanding, plus accrued and unpaid interest.

We have a redemption option to call the 2022 Convertible Notes 
prior to maturity (i) on or after March 1, 2022 and (ii) at any time 
if such a redemption is deemed reasonably necessary to preserve 
our qualification as a REIT. The redemption price will be equal to 
the principal of the notes being redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid 
interest. In the event of redemption after March 1, 2022, there 
will be an additional make-whole premium paid to the holder of 
the redeemed notes unless the redemption is deemed reasonably 
necessary to preserve our qualification as a REIT. We may redeem 
the 2023 Convertible notes at any time only if such a redemption is 
deemed reasonably necessary to preserve our qualification as a REIT.

The following table presents a summary of the components of the convertible notes:

(in millions)

Principal

Accrued interest

Less:

Unamortized financing costs

Carrying value of convertible notes

Interest expense

As of and for the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

$

$

$

294  $

2 

(5)

291  $

8  $

150 

2 

(3)

149 

7 

|  9 1

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

9. 

Commitments and Contingencies

Leases

We lease office space at our headquarters in Annapolis, Maryland 
under an operating lease entered into in 2011 and amended in 
2013 and 2017 to add additional space. The lease provides for 
operating expense reimbursements and annual escalations that are 
amortized over the respective lease terms on a straight-line basis. 
Lease payments under this lease commenced in 2012 and incremental 
payments related to the amendments commenced in 2014 and 2017. 
The lease expires in 2027.

Rent expense was less than $1 million for each of the years ended 
December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018, respectively. Future gross 
minimum lease payments are less than $1 million per year during the 
remaining term of the lease.

indemnity  against  certain  losses  resulting  from  our  own  actions, 
including related to certain investment tax credits.  As of December 31, 
2020, there have been no such actions resulting in claims against 
the Company.

We have made a guarantee related to the financing of one of our 
joint venture entities that owns debt securities of energy efficiency 
projects. The entity entered into a financing arrangement where we 
have guaranteed the obligations of the entity related to this financing, 
which includes collateral posting requirements as well as repayment 
of the financing at maturity in February 2021. As of December 31, 
2020, our maximum obligation under this guarantee is approximately 
$60 million. We have executed a separate agreement with the other 
joint venture partner pursuant to which it is liable for 15% of this 
obligation repayable to us. 

Litigation

COVID-19

The COVID-19 global pandemic has brought forth uncertainty and 
disruption to the global economy. As of December 31, 2020, we 
have not recorded any contingencies on our balance sheet related 
to COVID-19 with the exception of any allowances related to our 
receivables described in Note 6. To the extent COVID-19 continues 
to cause dislocations in the global economy, our financial condition, 
results of operations, and cash flows may be adversely impacted.

tax liabilities as the result of the changes in our estimated state tax 
rates. The federal income tax expense and benefits recorded were 
determined using a rate of 21%. Our deferred tax assets and liabilities 
were measured using a federal rate of 21%. Below is a reconciliation 
between the federal statutory rates of our TRS entities and our effective 
tax rates for the years ended December 31: 

2020

2019

2018

21% 

21%

21%

(13)%

(12)%

(4)%

—%

(8)%

2%

(2)%

(1)%

(15)%

5%

(1)%

(11)%

2%

2%

13%

The nature of our operations exposes us to the risk of claims and 
litigation in the normal course of our business. We are not currently 
subject to any legal proceedings that are probable of having a 
material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations 
or cash flows.

Guarantees

In connection with some of our transactions, we have provided certain 
limited representations, warranties, covenants and/or provided an 

Income Tax

10. 
We recorded an income tax benefit of approximately $3 million for the 
year ended December 31, 2020, an $8 million tax expense for the 
year ended December 31, 2019, and a $2 million tax expense for 
the year for the year ended 2018 related to the activities of our TRS. 
Of our $3 million benefit for the year ended December 31, 2020, 
approximately $1 million is related to the remeasurement of deferred 

Federal statutory income tax rate

Changes in rate resulting from:

Share-based compensation

Equity method investments

Other

Valuation allowance

Effective tax rate

9 2  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Our deferred tax liability was $8 million and $14 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, related to the activities of our TRS. 
Our deferred tax liability is included in accounts payable, accrued expenses and other on our consolidated balance sheet. Deferred income 
taxes represent the tax effect from continuing operations of the differences between the book and tax basis of assets and liabilities. Deferred tax 
assets (liabilities) include the following as of December 31:

(in millions)

Net operating loss (NOL) carryforwards

Tax credit carryforwards

Share-based compensation

Other

Valuation allowance

Gross deferred tax assets

Receivables basis difference

Equity method investments

Gross deferred tax liabilities

NET DEFERRED TAX LIABILITIES

2020

2019

$

$

$

63  $

15 

3 

9 

— 

90 

(12) $

(86)

(98)

(8) $

31 

13 

3 

3 

— 

50 

(12)

(52)

(64)

(14)

We have unused NOLs of $264 million and tax credits of approximately 
$15 million. Approximately, $74 million of our NOLs will begin to 
expire in 2035. If our TRS entities were to experience a change in 
control as defined in Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code, the 
TRS’s ability to utilize NOLs in the years after the change in control 
would be limited. Similar rules and limitation may apply for state tax 
purposes as well. Of our NOLs, $190 million were added in taxable 
years after 2018 which are not subject to expiration but are limited 
to 80% of taxable income. Our tax credits begin to expire in 2034.

We have no examinations in progress, none are expected at this time, 
and years 2017 through 2020 are open. As of December 2020 and 
2019, we had no uncertain tax positions. Our policy is to recognize 
interest expense and penalties related to income tax matters as a 
component of general and administrative expense. There were no 
accrued interest and penalties as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, 
and no interest and penalties were recognized during the years ended 
December 31, 2020, 2019, or 2018.

For federal income tax purposes, the cash dividends paid for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 are characterized as follows:

Common distributions

Ordinary income

Return of capital

11. 

Equity

Dividends and Distributions

2020

2019

—% 

100%

100%

18%

82%

100%

Our board of directors declared the following dividends in 2019 and 2020:

Announced Date

2/21/2019

6/6/2019

9/12/2019

12/13/2019

2/20/2020

6/5/2020

8/6/2020

11/5/2020

Record Date

4/3/2019

7/5/2019

10/3/2019

12/26/2019(1)

4/2/2020

7/2/2020

10/2/2020

12/28/2020(1)

Pay Date

4/11/2019

7/12/2019

10/10/2019

1/10/2020

4/10/2020

7/9/2020

10/9/2020

1/8/2021

$

Amount per share

0.335 

0.335 

0.335 

0.335 

0.340 

0.340 

0.340 

0.340 

(1)  These dividends are treated as distributions in the following year for tax purposes.

|  9 3

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Equity Offerings

We have an effective universal shelf registration statement registering 
the potential offer and sale, from time to time and in one or more 
offerings, of any combination of our common stock, preferred stock, 
depositary shares, debt securities, warrants and rights (collectively 
referred to as the “securities”). We may offer the securities directly, 

through agents, or to or through underwriters by means of ordinary 
brokers’ transactions on the NYSE or otherwise at market prices 
prevailing at the time of sale or at negotiated prices and may include 
“at the market” (“ATM”) offerings or sales, to or through a market maker 
or into an existing trading market on an exchange or otherwise. We 
completed the following public offerings (including ATM issuances) of 
our common stock in 2019 and 2020:

Date/Period

Common Stock Offerings

Shares Issued

Price Per Share

Net Proceeds(1)

(amounts in millions, except per share amounts)

1/3/2019(2)

Public Offering

0.465  $

21.60(3) $

Q1 2019

Q2 2019

Q4 2019

Q1 2020

Q2 2020

Q3 2020

Q4 2020

ATM

ATM

ATM

ATM

ATM

ATM

ATM

1.603 

1.926 

1.405 

4.500 

1.938 

0.875 

2.204 

23.39(4)

26.33(4)

30.00(4)

25.84(4)

23.10(4)

33.81(4)

50.35(4)

(1)  Net proceeds from the offerings are shown after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and other offering costs.
(2)  Includes shares issued in connection with the exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional shares.
(3)  Represents the price per share at which the underwriters in our public offerings purchased our shares.
(4)  Represents the average price per share at which investors in our ATM offerings purchased our shares.

9 

37 

50 

42 

115 

44 

29 

110 

Equity-based Compensation Awards Under Our 2013 Plan

We have 6,525,011 awards authorized for issuance under our 2013 Plan. As of December 31, 2020, we have issued awards with service, 
performance and market conditions and have 2,603,387 awards remaining available for issuance. During the year ended December 31, 
2020, our board of directors awarded employees and directors 514,969 shares of restricted stock, restricted stock units, and LTIP Units that 
vest from 2021 to 2024. As of December 31, 2020, as it relates to previously issued restricted stock awards with performance conditions, we 
have concluded that it is probable that the performance conditions will be met. Refer to Note 4 for background on the LTIP Units. 

A summary of equity-based compensation expense and the fair value of shares and LTIP Units vested on the vesting date for the years ended 
December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018 is as follows:

(in millions)

Equity-based compensation expense

Fair value of awards vested on vesting date

2020

2019

2018

$

17  $

39 

14  $

19 

10 

7 

The total unrecognized compensation expense related to awards of shares of restricted stock,  restricted stock units, and LTIP Units was 
approximately $11 million as of December 31, 2020. We expect to recognize compensation expense related to these awards over a weighted-
average term of approximately 2 years. A summary of the unvested shares of restricted common stock that have been issued is as follows:

Restricted Shares of 
Common Stock

Weighted Average 
Grant Date Fair Value

(per share)

Value

(in millions)

Ending Balance—December 31, 2018

1,386,756  $

19.00  $

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

Ending Balance—December 31, 2019

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

150,493 

(781,218)

(5,789)

750,242 

194,077 

(576,880)

(262)

23.99 

18.91 

20.62 

20.08 

32.93 

19.50 

28.59 

ENDING BALANCE—DECEMBER 31, 2020

367,177  $

27.77  $

9 4  |   

26.4 

3.6 

(14.8)

(0.1)

15.1 

6.4 

(11.3)

— 

10.2 

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

A summary of the unvested shares of restricted stock units that have market based vesting conditions that have been issued is as follows:

Restricted Stock  
Units(1)

Weighted Average 
Grant Date Fair Value

(per share)

Value

(in millions)

Ending Balance—December 31, 2018

393,148  $

19.55  $

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

46,586 

(1,380)

(2,776)

25.10 

21.68 

22.23 

Ending Balance—December 31, 2019

435,578  $

20.12  $

Granted

Incremental performance shares granted

Vested

Forfeited

23,342 

216,932 

(439,986)

(266)

27.18 

18.99 

19.04 

25.90 

ENDING BALANCE—DECEMBER 31, 2020

235,600  $

21.78  $

7.7 

1.2 

— 

(0.1)

8.8 

0.6 

4.1 

(8.4)

— 

5.1 

(1)  As  discussed  in  Note  2,  restricted  stock  units  with  market-based  vesting  conditions  can  vest  between  0%  and  200%  subject  to  both  the  absolute  performance  of  the 
Company’s common stock as well as relative performance compared to a group of peers. The incremental performance shares granted relate to the vesting of an award 
at the 200% level.

A summary of the unvested LTIP Units that have time-based vesting conditions that have been issued is as follows:

LTIP Units(1)

Weighted Average 
Grant Date Fair Value

(per share)

Value

(in millions)

Ending Balance—December 31, 2018

—  $

—  $

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

209,330 

(8,020)

— 

25.84 

25.82 

— 

Ending Balance—December 31, 2019

201,310  $

25.84  $

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

165,346 

(80,974)

— 

18.56 

25.87 

— 

ENDING BALANCE—DECEMBER 31, 2020

285,682  $

21.62  $

(1)  See Note 4 for information on the vesting of LTIP Units.

A summary of the unvested LTIP Units that have market-based vesting conditions that have been issued is as follows:

Ending Balance—December 31, 2018

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

Ending Balance—December 31, 2019

Granted

Vested

Forfeited

LTIP Units(1)

Weighted Average 
Grant Date Fair Value

(per share)

Value

(in millions)

—  $

180,500 

— 

— 

180,500  $

132,204 

— 

— 

—  $

26.70 

— 

— 

26.70  $

12.25 

— 

— 

ENDING BALANCE—DECEMBER 31, 2020

312,704  $

20.59  $

— 

5.4 

(0.2)

— 

5.2 

3.1 

(2.1)

— 

6.2 

— 

4.8 

— 

— 

4.8 

1.6 

— 

— 

6.4 

(1)  See Note 4 for information on the vesting of LTIP Units. LTIP Units with market-based vesting conditions can vest between 0% and 200% subject to both the absolute 

performance of the Company’s common stock as well as relative performance compared to a group of peers.

|  9 5

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Earnings per Share of Common Stock
12. 
Both the net income or loss attributable to the non-controlling OP units 
and the non-controlling limited partners’ outstanding OP units have 
been excluded from the basic earnings per share and the diluted 
earnings per share calculations attributable to common stockholders. 
Unvested share-based payment awards that contain non-forfeitable 
rights to dividends or dividend equivalents (whether paid or unpaid) 
are participating securities and are excluded from net income available 
to common shareholders in the computation of earnings per share 

pursuant to the two-class method. Certain share based awards are 
included in the diluted share count to the extent they are dilutive as 
discussed in Note 2. To the extent our convertible notes are dilutive 
under the if-converted method, we add back the interest expense to 
the numerator and include the weighted average shares of potential 
common stock over the period issuable upon conversion of the note 
in the denominator in calculating dilutive EPS as described in Note 2. 

The computation of basic and diluted earnings per common share of common stock is as follows:

(dollars in millions, except share and per share data)

2020

2019

2018

Year ended December 31,

Numerator:

Net income (loss) attributable to controlling stockholders and participating 
securities

Less: Dividends and distributions to participating securities

Undistributed earnings attributable to participating securities

Net income (loss) attributable to controlling stockholders

Add: Interest expense related to convertible notes under the if-converted 
method

Net income (loss) attributable to controlling stockholders—diluted

Denominator:

Weighted-average number of common shares—basic

Weighted-average number of common shares—diluted

Basic earnings per common share

Diluted earnings per common share

Securities being allocated a portion of earnings:

Weighted-average number of OP units

Participating securities:

Unvested restricted common stock and unvested LTIP Units with time-based 
vesting conditions outstanding at period end 

Potentially dilutive securities as of period end:

Unvested restricted common stock and unvested LTIP Units with time-based 
vesting conditions

Restricted stock units

LTIP Units with market-based vesting conditions

$

$

$

$

$

82.4  $

81.6  $

41.6 

(0.9)

—

81.5  $

0.4 

(1.4)

— 

80.2  $

—

81.9  $

80.2  $

(1.8)

— 

39.8 

—

39.8 

72,387,581 

63,916,440 

52,780,449 

74,373,169 

64,771,491 

52,780,449 

1.13  $

1.10  $

1.25  $

1.24  $

0.75 

0.75 

309,465 

279,135 

281,106 

652,859 

951,552 

1,386,756 

652,859 

951,552 

1,386,756 

235,600 

312,704 

435,578 

180,500 

393,148 

— 

Potential shares of common stock related to convertible notes

8,487,800 

5,510,499 

5,506,605 

9 6  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
 
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Equity Method Investments

13. 
We have non-controlling unconsolidated equity investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency projects as well as in a joint venture that 
owns land with long-term triple net lease agreements to several solar projects. During the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018 
we recognized income (loss) of $48 million, $64 million, and $22 million respectively, from our equity method investments. We describe our 
accounting for the non-controlling equity investments in Note 2.

The following is a summary of the consolidated financial position and results of operations of the significant entities accounted for using the 
equity method. 

in millions

Balance Sheet

As of September 30, 2020

Current assets

Total assets

Current liabilities

Total liabilities

Members’ equity

As of December 31, 2019

Current assets

Total assets

Current liabilities

Total liabilities

Members’ equity

Income Statement

For the nine months ended September 30, 2020

Revenue

Income from continuing operations

Net income

For the year ended December 31, 2019

Revenue

Income from continuing operations

Net income

For the year ended December 31, 2018

Revenue

Income from continuing operations

Net income

SunStrong Capital 
Holdings, LLC

Jupiter Equity 
Holdings, LLC

Other  
Investments(1)

Total

$

94  $

88 $

233  $

1,472 

48 

1,179 

293 

99 

1,335 

54 

1,010 

325 

94 

(9)

(9)

102 

(16)

(16)

— 

— 

— 

2,689 

229 

340 

2,349 

289 

1,892 

209 

270 

1,622 

19 

(36)

(36)

— 

34 

34 

— 

— 

— 

4,992 

647 

2,225 

2,767 

254 

3,270 

230 

975 

2,295 

275 

(84)

(84)

155 

(73)

(73)

176 

(42)

(42)

415

9,153 

924 

3,744 

5,409 

642 

6,497 

493 

2,255 

4,242 

388 

(129)

(129)

257 

(55)

(55)

176 

(42)

(42)

(1)  Represents aggregated financial statement information for investments not separately presented.

14.  Defined Contribution Plan
We administer a 401(k) savings plan, a defined contribution plan covering substantially all of our employees. Employees in the plan may 
contribute up to the maximum annual IRS limit before taxes via payroll deduction. Under the plan, we provide a dollar for dollar match for the 
first 4% of the employee’s contributions and a $0.50 per dollar match for the next 2% of employee contributions. We contributed less than 
$1 million under the plan for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018, respectively.

|  9 7

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

PA R T   I I

Selected Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited)

15. 
The following table summarizes our quarterly financial data which, in the opinion of management, reflects all adjustments, consisting only of 
normal recurring adjustments, necessary for a fair presentation of our results of operations (Amounts for the individual quarters when aggregated 
may not agree to the full year due to rounding):

(in millions, except for per share data)

March 31, 2020

June 30, 2020

Sept. 30, 2020

Dec. 31, 2020

For the Three-Months Ended

Total revenue

Total expenses

Income before equity method investments

Income (loss) from equity method investments

Income (loss) before income taxes

Income tax (expense) benefit

NET INCOME (LOSS)

$

40,834  $

48,595  $

48,589  $

31,089 

9,745 

16,588 

26,333 

(1,923)

24,410 

37,354 

11,241 

(589)

10,652 

1,407 

12,059 

41,474 

7,115 

16,507 

23,622 

(2,345)

21,277 

48,889 

44,973 

3,916

15,457

19,373

5,640

25,013

Net income (loss) attributable to controlling stockholders

Basic earnings (loss) per common share

Diluted earnings (loss) per common share

$

$

24,308  $

12,008  $

21,175  $

24,925 

0.36  $

0.35 

0.16  $

0.16 

0.28  $

0.28 

0.33 

0.32

(in millions, except for  per share data)

March 31, 2019

June 30, 2019

Sept. 30, 2019

Dec. 31, 2019

For the Three-Months Ended

Total revenue

Total expenses

Income before equity method investments

Income (loss) from equity method investments

Income (loss) before income taxes

Income tax (expense) benefit

NET INCOME (LOSS)

$

33,143  $

31,268  $

38,842  $

26,211 

6,932 

4,506 

11,438 

2,270 

13,708 

25,258 

6,010 

7,624 

13,634 

(839)

12,795 

35,518 

3,324 

5,984 

9,308 

(132)

9,176 

Net income (loss) attributable to controlling stockholders

Basic earnings (loss) per common share

Diluted earnings (loss) per common share

$

$

13,646  $

12,740  $

0.22  $

0.21

0.20  $

0.19

9,102  $

0.14  $

0.13

38,328 

28,751 

9,577 

46,060 

55,637 

(9,396)

46,241 

46,076 

0.70 

0.66

SCHEDULE II - VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS 
ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES

(in thousands) 

Balance at beginning of period

Charged to provision

Loan charge-offs

Balance at end of period

For the year ended December 31,

2020

2019

2018

$

$

8,027 

27,730 

— 

35,757 

$

$

— 

8,027 

— 

8,027 

$

$

—

—

—

—

9 8  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I I

Item 9B. Other Information

ITEM 9.  CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON 

ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

None.

ITEM 9A.  CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

A  review  and  evaluation  was  performed  by  our  management, 
including our chief executive officer and chief financial officer, of the 
effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and 
procedures (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) 
under the Exchange Act), as of the end of the period covered by this 
Form 10-K. Based on that review and evaluation, the chief executive 
officer and chief financial officer have concluded that our current 
disclosure controls and procedures, as designed and implemented, 
were effective. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a control system, no 
matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable, 
not absolute, assurance that it will detect or uncover failures within our 
company to disclose material information otherwise required to be set 
forth in our periodic reports.

•  provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely 
detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of our 
assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial 
reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Projections of any 
evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risks that 
controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions 
or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may 
deteriorate.

Our management assessed the effectiveness of our internal control 
over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020. In making this 
assessment, our management used criteria set forth by the Committee 
of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission in Internal 
Control-Integrated Framework (2013 Framework).

Management’s Report on Internal Control 
Over Financial Reporting

Based on this assessment, our management believes  that, as of 
December 31, 2020, our internal control over financial reporting 
was effective based on those criteria.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial 
Reporting

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial 
reporting that occurred during the quarter ended December 31, 2020 
that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially 
affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Our company’s independent registered public accounting firm, Ernst & 
Young LLP, has issued an attestation report on the effectiveness of our 
company’s internal control over financial reporting. This report appears 
on page 84 of this annual report on Form 10-K.

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining 
adequate internal control over financial reporting. Internal control 
over financial reporting is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) 
promulgated under the Exchange Act as a process designed by, or 
under the supervision of, our principal executive and principal financial 
officers and effected by our board of directors, management and other 
personnel to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability 
of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for 
external purposes in accordance with U.S. GAAP and includes those 
policies and procedures that:

•  pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail 
accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of 
the assets of our company;

•  provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded 
as  necessary  to  permit  preparation  of  financial  statements 
in  accordance  with  U.S.  GAAP,  and  that  our  receipts  and 
expenditures  are  being  made  only  in  accordance  with 
authorizations of our management and directors; and

ITEM 9B.  OTHER INFORMATION

None.

|  9 9

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
PA R T   I I I

PART III

ITEM 10.  DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The information regarding our directors, executive officers and certain 
other matters required by Item 401 of Regulation S-K is incorporated 
herein by reference to our definitive proxy statement relating to our 
annual meeting of stockholders (the “Proxy Statement”), to be filed with 
the SEC within 120 days after December 31, 2020.

The information regarding compliance with Section 16(a) of the 
Exchange Act required by Item 405 of Regulation S-K is incorporated 
herein by reference to the Proxy Statement to be filed with the SEC 
within 120 days after December 31, 2020.

The information regarding our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics 
required by Item 406 of Regulation S-K is incorporated herein by 
reference to the Proxy Statement to be filed with the SEC within  
120 days after December 31, 2020.

The information regarding certain matters pertaining to our corporate 
governance required by Item 407(c)(3), (d)(4) and (d)(5) of Regulation 
S-K is incorporated by reference to the Proxy Statement to be filed with 
the SEC within 120 days after December 31, 2020.

ITEM 11.  EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

The information regarding executive compensation and other compensation related matters required by Items 402 and 407(e)(4) and (e)(5) of 
Regulation S-K is incorporated herein by reference to the Proxy Statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after December 31, 2020.

ITEM 12.  SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS 

AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

The tables on beneficial ownership of our Company required by Item 403 of Regulation S-K are incorporated herein by reference to the Proxy 
Statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after December 31, 2020.

Securities Authorized For Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
In 2013, we adopted the 2013 Plan to provide equity based incentive compensation to members of our senior management team, our 
independent directors, advisers, consultants and other personnel. The 2013 Plan authorizes our compensation committee to grant stock options, 
shares of restricted common stock, restricted stock units, phantom shares, dividend equivalent rights, LTIP units and other restricted limited partnership 
units issued by our Operating Partnership and other equity-based awards up to an aggregate of 7.5% of the shares of common stock issued 
and outstanding from time to time on a fully diluted basis (assuming, if applicable, the exercise of all outstanding options and the conversion of 
all warrants and convertible securities, including OP units and LTIP units, into shares of common stock).

As of December 31, 2020, we have approximately 1.7 million shares of our restricted common stock, LTIP Units, and restricted common stock 
units outstanding (assuming that the restricted stock units vest at 200%), which are subject to vesting and, in some cases, performance requirements, 
to our directors, officers and other employees.

The following table presents certain information about our equity compensation plan as of December 31, 2020:

Award

Equity compensation plans approved by stockholders

Equity compensation plans not approved by stockholders

TOTAL

Number of securities  
remaining available for 
future issuance under  
equity compensation plans(1)

2,603,387 

— 

2,603,387 

(1)  The 2013 Plan provides for grants of equity awards up to, in the aggregate, the equivalent of 7.5% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock from time 
to time (on a fully diluted basis (assuming, if applicable, the exercise of all outstanding options and the conversion of all warrants and convertible securities into shares 
of common stock and assuming performance based LTIP units vest at 200%)) at the time of the award. As of December 31, 2020, we did not have outstanding under our 
equity compensation plan, any options, warrants or rights to purchase shares of our common stock.

1 0 0  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I I I
PA R T   I I I

Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services

ITEM 13.  CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS 

AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

The information regarding transactions with related persons, promoters and certain control persons and director independence required by 
Items 404 and 407(a) of Regulation S-K is incorporated herein by reference to the Proxy Statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days 
after December 31, 2020.

ITEM 14.  PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

The information concerning principal accounting fees and services and the Audit Committee’s pre-approval policies and procedures required 
by Item 14 is incorporated herein by reference to the Proxy Statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after December 31, 2020.

|  1 0 1

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

PART IV

ITEM 15.  EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES

Documents filed as part of the report
The following documents are filed as part of this Form 10-K in Part II, Item 8 and are incorporated by reference:

(a)(1) 

Financial Statements:

 See index in Item 8—“Financial Statements and Supplementary Data,” filed herewith for a list of financial statements.

(a)(2) 2.  Financial Statement Schedules: 

 See index in Item 8—“Financial Statements and Supplementary Data,” filed herewith for Schedule II – Valuation and Qualifying Accounts 
filed in response to this Item.

 (3) 

Exhibits Files: 

Exhibit number

Exhibit description

Articles of Amendment and Restatement of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (incorporated by reference to 
Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 (No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Bylaws of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to the Registrant’s 
Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 (No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Amended and Restated Agreement of Limited Partnership of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P. (incorporated by 
reference to Exhibit 3.3 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 (No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 
2013)

Specimen Common Stock Certificate of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (incorporated by reference to 
Exhibit 4.1 to Amendment No. 3 to the Registrant’s Form S-11 (No. 333-186711), filed on April 12, 2013)

Description of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.’s Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12 of the 
Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Indenture, dated as of August 22, 2017, between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and U.S. Bank 
National Association, as Trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Form 8-K (No. 001-35877), filed on 
August 22, 2017)

First Supplemental Indenture, dated as of August 22, 2017, between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
U.S. Bank National Association, as Trustee (including the form of 4.125% Convertible Senior Note due 2022) (incorporated by 
reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Form 8-K (No. 001-35877), filed on August 22, 2017)

Indenture, dated as of July 2, 2019 between HAT Holdings I LLC and HAT Holdings II LLC, as issuers, and Hannon Armstrong 
Sustainable Infrastructure capital, Inc., Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, LP., and Hannon Armstrong Capital, LLC, as 
guarantors, and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (including the form of HAT Holdings I LLC and HAT Holdings II LLC’s 
5.25% Senior Notes due 2024) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Form 8-K (No. 001-35877), filed on 
July 2, 2019)

Indenture, dated as of April 21, 2020, between HAT Holdings I LLC and HAT Holdings II LLC, as issuers, and Hannon Armstrong 
Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc., Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P., and Hannon Armstrong Capital, LLC, as 
guarantors, and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (including the form of HAT Holdings I LLC and HAT Holdings II LLC’s 
6.00% Senior Notes due 2025) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 on the Registrant’s Form 8-K (No. 001-35877), filed on 
April 21, 2020)

Second Supplemental Indenture, dated as of August 21, 2020, between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. 
and U.S. Bank National Association, as Trustee (including the form of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.’s 0% 
Convertible Senior Note due 2023) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Form 8-K (No. 001-35877), filed 
on August 21, 2020).

3.1

3.2

3.3

4.1

4.2

4.3

4.4

4.5

4.6

4.7

1 0 2  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORT 
 
 
 
 
PA R T   I V

Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules

Exhibit description

Indenture, dated as of August 25, 2020, between HAT Holdings I LLC and HAT Holdings II LLC, as issuers, and Hannon Armstrong 
Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc., Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P., and Hannon Armstrong Capital, LLC, as 
guarantors, and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (including the form of HAT Holdings I LLC and HAT Holdings II LLC’s 
3.750% Senior Notes due 2030) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 on the Registrant’s Form 8-K (No. 011-35877), filed on 
August 25, 2020).

Form of Indemnification Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to Amendment No. 3 to the Registrant’s Form S-11 
(No. 333-186711), filed on April 12, 2013)

Amended and Restated 2013 Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. Equity Incentive Plan (incorporated by 
reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 (No. 001-35877), filed on May 4, 
2017)

Restricted Stock Award Agreement dated April  23, 2013 between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
Jeffrey W. Eckel (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June  30, 2013 
(No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Form of Restricted Stock Award Agreement (Executive Officers) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Form 
10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 (No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Form of Restricted Stock Award Agreement (Non-employee Directors) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to the Registrant’s 
Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 (No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Amended and Restated Form of Restricted Stock Unit Award Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s 
Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March, 31 2017 (No. 001-35877), filed on May 4, 2017)

Registration Rights Agreement, dated April  23, 2013, by and among Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. 
and the parties listed on Schedule I thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter 
ended June 30, 2013 (No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Employment Agreement, dated April  17, 2013, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
Jeffrey Eckel (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June  30, 2013 (No. 
001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Employment Agreement, dated April  17, 2013, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and J. 
Brendan Herron, Jr. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.8 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 
(No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Employment Agreement, dated April  17, 2013, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
Steven L. Chuslo (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 
(No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Employment Agreement, dated April  17, 2013, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
Nathaniel J. Rose (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.10 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 
(No. 001-35877), filed on August 9, 2013)

Employment Agreement, dated April  17, 2013, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
Daniel McMahon (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2015 
(No. 001-35877), filed on August 7, 2015)

Indemnity Agreement, dated as of September 30, 2015, by Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. in favor 
of the Bank of New York Mellon (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 
September 30, 2015 (No. 001-35877), filed on November 5, 2015)

Employment Agreement, dated March 15, 2017, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and 
Charles Melko (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 
(No. 001-35877), filed on May 4, 2017)

Form of Amended and Restated Restricted Stock Unit Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.57 to the Registrant’s Form 
10-K (No. 001-35877) for the year ended December, 31, 2017, filed on February 23, 2018)

Loan Agreement (Rep-Based), dated as of December 13, 2018 by and among certain subsidiaries of the Company, Bank of 
America, N.A., as administrative agent, and each lender from time to time party thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.26 
on the Registrant’s Form 10-K (No. 001-35877) for the year ended December 31, 2018, filed on February 22, 2019)

Loan Agreement (Approval-Based), data as of December 13, 2018, by and among certain subsidiaries of the Company, Bank of 
America, N.A., as administrative agent, and each lender from time to time party thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.27 
on the Registrant’s Form 10-K (No. 001-35877) for the year ended December 31, 2018, filed on February 22, 2019)

Limited Guaranty (Rep-Based), dated as of December 13, 2018, by the Company and Hannon Armstrong Capital, LLC 
(incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.28 on the Registrant’s Form 10-K (No. 001-35877) for the year ended December 31, 
2018, filed on February 22, 2019)

Exhibit number

4.8

10.1

10.2

10.3

10.4

10.5

10.6

10.7

10.8

10.9

10.10

10.11

10.12

10.13

10.14

10.15

10.16

10.17

10.18

|  1 0 3

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

Exhibit description

Guaranty (Approval-Based), dated as of December 13, 2018, by the Company and Hannon Armstrong Capital, LLC (incorporated 
by reference to Exhibit 10.29 on the Registrant’s Form 10-K (No. 001-35877) for the year ended December 31, 2018, filed on 
February 22, 2019)

Form of LTIP Unit Vesting Agreement under the 2013 Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. Equity Incentive Plan 
(incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 (No. 001-35877), 
filed on May 3, 2019)

Form of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P. Time-Based LTIP Unit Award Agreement (incorporated by reference to 
Exhibit 10.3 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 (No. 001-35877), filed on May 3, 2019)

Form of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P. Performance-Based LTIP Unit Award Agreement (incorporated by reference 
to Exhibit 10.4 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2019 (No. 001-35877), filed on May 3, 2019)

Amended and Restated Employment Agreement, dated April 13, 2020, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable 
Infrastructure Capital, Inc. and Jeffrey A. Lipson (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to the Registrant’s Form 10-Q for the 
quarter ended March 31, 2020 (No. 001-35877), filed on May 11, 2020)

At Market Issuance Sales Agreement, dated May 13, 2020, by and between Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, 
Inc., B. Riley FBR, Inc., Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated, BofA Securities, Inc., Loop Capital Markets LLC, SMBC Nikko 
Securities America, Inc. and Nomura Securities International, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 1.1 to the Registrant’s Form 
8-K (No. 001-35877), filed on May 13, 2020)

List of subsidiaries of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

Consent of Ernst & Young LLP for Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

Power of Attorney (included on signature page)

Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes—Oxley Act of 2002

Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to section 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the 
Sarbanes—Oxley Act of 2002

Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to section 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the 
Sarbanes—Oxley Act of 2002

Exhibit number

10.19

10.20

10.21

10.22

10.23

10.24

21.1*

23.1*

24.1*

31.1*

31.2*

32.1**

32.2**

101.SCH*

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema

101.CAL*

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase

101.DEF*

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase

101.LAB*

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase

101 PRE*

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase

104

Cover Page Interactive Data File Included as Exhibit 101 (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

Filed herewith.

* 
**  Furnished with this report.

ITEM 16.  FORM 10-K SUMMARY

None.

1 0 4  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be 
signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

Date: February 22, 2021

HANNON ARMSTRONG SUSTAINABLE  
INFRASTRUCTURE CAPITAL, INC.  
(Registrant)

/s/ Jeffrey W. Eckel

Jeffrey W. Eckel 
Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President

/s/ Jeffrey A. Lipson

Jeffrey A. Lipson 
Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer, and  
Executive Vice President

/s/ Charles W. Melko

Charles W. Melko 
Chief Accounting Officer, Treasurer and Senior Vice President

|  1 0 5

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

POWER OF ATTORNEY
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose 
signature appears below constitutes and appoints Jeffrey W. Eckel, 
Jeffrey A. Lipson and Charles W. Melko, and each of them, with full 
power to act without the other, such person’s true and lawful attorneys-
in-fact and agents, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, 
for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and 
all capacities, to sign this Form 10-K and any and all amendments 
thereto, and to file the same, with exhibits and schedules thereto, 
and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and 
Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, 
and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each 

and every act and thing necessary or desirable to be done in and 
about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she 
might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that 
said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, or their or his or 
her substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by 
virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 
as amended, this report has been signed below by the following 
persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the 
dates indicated.

Signatures

Title

By: /s/ Jeffrey W. Eckel

Jeffrey W. Eckel

By: /s/ Jeffrey A. Lipson

Jeffrey A. Lipson

By: /s/ Charles W. Melko

Charles W. Melko

By: /s/ Teresa M. Brenner

Teresa M. Brenner

By: /s/ Michael T. Eckhart

Michael T. Eckhart

By: /s/ Simone F. Lagomarsino

Simone F. Lagomarsino 

By: /s/ Charles M. O’Neil

Charles M. O’Neil

By: /s/ Richard J. Osborne

Richard J. Osborne

By: /s/ Steven G. Osgood

Steven G. Osgood

1 0 6  |   

Chairman of the Board, President  
and Chief Executive Officer  
(Principal Executive Officer)

Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating  
Officer and Executive Vice President  
(Principal Financial Officer)

Chief Accounting Officer, Treasurer and  
Senior Vice President  
(Principal Accounting Officer)

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

EXHIBIT 21.1 
SUBSIDIARIES OF THE REGISTRANT

Subsidiary

Cobalt Upwind Holdings LLC

HA AllStrong LLC

HA Antelope DSR 3 LLC

HA Athena Capital Holdings LLC

HA Buckeye Holdings LLC

HA Coy Hill Road LLC

HA Clover Creek LLC

HA CLP Funding LLC

HA C-PACE 2019-1 Issuer LLC 

HA C-PACE SAC LLC

HA Daggett Lender LLC

HA Daybreak Holdings LLC

HA Driving Range A LLC

HA Driving Range C LLC

HA EECI Lender LLC

HA EECI LLC

HA EMaaS Lender LLC

HA FMAC Holdings LLC

HA FMAC K102 LLC

HA FMAC KG02 LLC

HA FMAC KG03 LLC

HA Galileo LLC

HA Galileo 2 LLC

HA Hawkeye LLC

HA Helix LLC

HA INV Buckeye LLC

HA INV Gunsight LLC

HA Juniper LLC 

HA Juniper II LLC

HA Jupiter LLC

HA Land Financing Depositor LLC

HA Land Financing Issuer LLC

HA Land Financing Issuer 2 LLC

HA Land Financing Member 2 LLC

HA Land Lease I LLC

HA Land Lease II LLC

HA Land Lease Holdings LLC

HA Land Lease Holdings II LLC

Jurisdiction

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

|  1 0 7

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

Subsidiary

HA Lighthouse LLC

HA MHPI Funding LLC

HA P3 Holdings

HA PACE Origination LLC 

HA PACE Warehouse LLC

HA PanelCo Lender LLC

HA San Pablo Raceway LLC

HA Skipjack LLC

HA Spencer Road LLC

HA SRC Holdings LLC

HA SRC Lender LLC

HA Sun Streams LLC

HA Sunrise LLC

HA SunStrong Capital LLC

HA Thrive LLC

HA Thrive 2 LL

HA Virginia Land LLC

HA Wetlands LLC

HA WG Funding LLC

HA Wildcat LLC

HA Wind I LLC

HA Wind II LLC

Hannie Mae Goco LLC

Hannie Mae II LLC

Hannie Mae IV LLC

Hannie Mae V LLC

Hannie Mae XI LLC

Hannie Mae XII LLC

Hannie Mae XIII LLC

Hannie Mae XIV LLC

Hannie Mae XVII LLC

Hannie Mae XVIII LLC

Hannie Mae XIX LLC

Hannie Mae LLC

Hannie Mae SRS Funding LLC

Hannon Armstrong Capital, LLC

Hannon Armstrong KCS Funding LLC

Hannon Armstrong Securities, LLC

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure, L.P.

HASI ECON 101 LLC

HASI OBS OP A LLC

1 0 8  |   

Jurisdiction

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Virginia

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

Subsidiary

HASI SYB I LLC

HASI SYB 2017-1 LLC

HASI SYB Trust 2016-2 Holdings LLC

HAT Holdings I LLC

HAT Holdings II LLC

HAT OBS OP A LLC

HAT OBS OP 5 LLC

HAT Scorpio Capital Lender LLC

HAT Solar Sail Capital Lender LLC

HAT SYB I LLC

HAT SYB Trust 2016-2 Holdings LLC

HAT Terrier Acquisition LLC

HAT Terrier Capital Lender LLC

HAT Ultralight Capital Lender LLC

HAT Ultralight Capital Lender 2 LLC

HAT V3 Capital Member LLC

HAT V3 Capital Lender LLC

Lannie Mae LLC

Lannie Mae Depositor LLC

Rhea Borrower (HASI) LLC

Rhea Borrower (HAT I) LLC

Rhea Borrower (HAT II) LLC

Strong Upwind Holdings LLC

Strong Upwind Holdings II LLC

Strong Upwind Holdings III LLC

Strong Upwind Residual LLC

SunStrong Capital Lender Holdings LLC

SunStrong Capital Lender LLC

SunStrong Capital Lender 2 LLC

SunStrong Capital Lender 3 LLC

SunStrong Capital Lender 6 LLC

Titan Borrower (HASI) LLC

Titan Borrower (HAT I) LLC

Titan-Rhea Holdings (HASI) LLC

Titan-Rhea Holdings (HAT I) LLC

Titan-Rhea Holdings (HAT II) LLC

Jurisdiction

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Delaware

Maryland

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Delaware

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Maryland

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Delaware

Exh. 21.1-1

|  1 0 9

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

Exhibit 23.1  
Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

We consent to the incorporation by reference in the following Registration Statements:

(1)  Registration Statement (Form S-3 No. 333-198158) of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.,

(2)  Registration Statement (Form S-8 No. 333-230548) pertaining to the 2013 Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. Equity 

Incentive Plan, and

(3)  Registration Statement (Form S-3ASR No. 333-230546) of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc.

of our reports dated February 22, 2021, with respect to the consolidated financial statements of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure 
Capital, Inc. and the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. included 
in this Annual Report (Form 10-K) of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. for the year ended December 31, 2020.

/s/ Ernst & Young LLP

Tysons, Virginia
February 22, 2021

Exh. 23.1-1

1 1 0  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

EXHIBIT 31.1  
CERTIFICATIONS

I, Jeffrey W. Eckel, certify that:

1. 

I have reviewed this Annual Report on Form 10-K of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (the “registrant”);

2.  Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to 
make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period 
covered by this report;

3.  Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects 

the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.  The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined 
in Exchange Act Rules 13a–15(e) and 15d–15(e)) and internal controls over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) 
and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

a. Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, 
to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within 
those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

b. Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our 
supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements 
for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

c.  Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the 
effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

d. Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most 
recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an Annual Report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably 
likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.  The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, 
to the registrant’s auditors and the Audit Committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a. All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are 

reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

b. Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal 

control over financial reporting.

Date: February 22, 2021

By: /s/ Jeffrey W. Eckel

Name: Jeffrey W. Eckel
Title: Chief Executive Officer and President

Exh. 31.1-1

|  1 1 1

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

EXHIBIT 31.2  
CERTIFICATIONS

I, Jeffrey A. Lipson, certify that:

1. 

I have reviewed this Annual Report on Form 10-K of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (the “registrant”);

2.  Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to 
make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period 
covered by this report;

3.  Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects 

the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.  The registrant’s other certifying officer(s) and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined 
in Exchange Act Rules 13a–15(e) and 15d–15(e)) and internal controls over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) 
and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

a. Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, 
to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within 
those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

b. Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our 
supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements 
for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

c.  Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the 
effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

d. Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most 
recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an Annual Report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably 
likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.  The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, 
to the registrant’s auditors and the Audit Committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a. All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are 

reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

b. Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal 

control over financial reporting.

Date: February 22, 2021

By: /s/ Jeffrey A. Lipson

Name: Jeffrey A. Lipson
Title:  Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer 

and Executive Vice President

Exh. 31.2-1

1 1 2  |   

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

EXHIBIT 32.1  
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO SECTION 906  
OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002, 10 U.S.C. SECTION 1350

In connection with the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (the “Company”) for the period 
ended December 31, 2020 to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on or about the date hereof (the “report”), I, Jeffrey W. 
Eckel, Chief Executive Officer and President of the Company, certify, pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, 18 U.S.C. 
Section 1350, that:

1.  The report fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

2.  The information contained in the report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the 

Company.

It is not intended that this statement be deemed to be filed for purposes of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Date: February 22, 2021

By: /s/ Jeffrey W. Eckel

Name: Jeffrey W. Eckel
Title: Chief Executive Officer and President

Exh. 32.1-1

|  1 1 3

HANNON ARMSTRONG  |  2020 ANNUAL REPORTPA R T   I V

Item 16. Form 10-K Summary

EXHIBIT 32.2 
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO SECTION 906 
OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002, 10 U.S.C. SECTION 1350

In connection with the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital, Inc. (the “Company”) for the period 
ended December 31, 2020 to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on or about the date hereof (the “report”), I, Jeffrey A. 
Lipson, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of the Company, certify, pursuant to Section 906 of the 
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, that:

1.  The report fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

2.  The information contained in the report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the 

Company.

It is not intended that this statement be deemed to be filed for purposes of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Date: February 22, 2021

By: /s/ Jeffrey A. Lipson

Name: Jeffrey A. Lipson
Title:  Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer  

and Executive Vice President

Exh. 32.2-1

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