Nextracker

Nextracker Inc. (NXT) is an American solar tracker manufacturing company based in Fremont, California.^[2]

Nextracker Inc.

Company type	Public
Traded as	Nasdaq: NXT (Class A) S&P 400 component
Headquarters	Fremont, California, U.S.
Revenue	US$2,500 million (2024)
Operating income	US$587 million (2023)
Net income	US$306 million (2023)
Total assets	US$2,520 million (2023)
Total equity	US$992 million (2023)
Number of employees	1,050
Website	nextracker.com
Footnotes / references [1]

History

In 2014, Solaria Corporation spun off their tracker technology to create Nextracker, with Dan Shugar as the CEO.^[3]

Flextronics purchased Nextracker in 2015 for $330 million.^[4] In 2016, Nextracker acquired BrightBox Technologies, Inc., which develops predictive modeling software and machine-learning technologies.^[5] This acquisition led to the development and 2017 launch of TrueCapture, an intelligent, self-adjusting tracker control system that continuously refines the tracking algorithm of each individual solar array in response to existing site and weather conditions, delivering 2% to 6% energy gains.^[6]

Nextracker expanded in more than 20 U.S. manufacturing lines in Texas, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Tennessee, and Nevada between January 2021 and August 2024.^[7] As of March 31, 2024^[update], the company’s total global manufacturing capacity was approximately 1,000 MW per week, supporting up to 50 GW of annual shipments.^[8]

In February 2023, the company raised $638 million in a U.S. initial public offering, selling 26.6 million shares of Class A common stock at $24 per share, resulting in a corporate valuation of more than $3.5 billion. It debuted on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on February 9, 2023, under the ticker symbol, NXT.^[9][10]

In late 2024, a class action lawsuit was filed against Nextracker and several of its executives, including Dan Shugar, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. The complaint alleges violations of federal securities laws, asserting that the company and its leadership made materially false or misleading statements during the class period, which allegedly led to investor losses. The lawsuit claims that the defendants, including Shugar, failed to disclose adverse facts about the company's business and operations, thereby misleading investors. ^[11]

Technology

As of March 31, 2024, Nextracker had more than 600 patents related to solar tracking hardware systems, including innovations that increase energy yields, reduce costs, and expand tracking system applications.^[12][8]

Solar trackers

The company pioneered decentralized, single-axis trackers that connect each row of solar panels to its own motor and control system. This design allows each solar panel row to move independently to position the panels toward the sun, maximizing energy yield for the entire fleet.^[12]

The company’s terrain-following trackers adapt to a site’s natural contours, reducing grading requirements, minimizing environmental impact, and expanding the viability of solar projects on landscapes with extreme terrain.^[13]

In 2024, Nextracker introduced tracker technology that uses weather-forecasting data and AI to automatically adjust solar panel angles into a stow mode ahead of hailstorms to avoid direct hits.^[14][15] The product was developed to mitigate the rising cost of insuring solar arrays from hail and other weather-related damage.^[16] The same technology is also used to stow panels during grid outages without operator intervention.^[13]

Software, controls & training

The company’s software monitors weather conditions, checks for blind spots, and directs the position of individual rows of solar panels to optimize energy yield.^[12] A new tracking function added in 2023 adjusts trackers to variations in cloud cover across an entire power plant, enabling plants to chase clouds for added gains without compromising tracking performance during clear sky conditions^[13]

PowerworX Academy

The company’s PowerworX Academy provide operators of utility-scale solar power plants from around the world with training in tracker installation, commissioning, operations and maintenance. Graduates receive professional development credits from the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners.^[17]

Acquisitions

In 2016, Nextracker acquired BrightBox Technologies Inc., a predictive modeling software and machine-learning technologies company. Located in Berkeley, California, BrightBox develops technologies that increase the energy yield of solar projects.^[18][19]

In 2024, Nextracker acquired Ojjo, a San Rafael, California-based renewable energy company that specializes in foundation technology and services used in utility-scale solar power projects. Ojjo’s truss systems use half the steel of conventional foundations and are designed to minimize grading requirements in utility-scale projects. The all-cash transaction was valued at US$119 million.^[20][21]

In 2024, Nextracker acquired solar PV foundations supplier Solar Pile International, located in Leetsdale, Pennsylvania, for US$48 million. The acquisition supports Nextracker’s plans to provide integrated solutions for a broad range of soil conditions at utility-scale projects.^[22][23]

In 2025, Nextracker acquired Bentek Corporation, a San Jose, California-based provider of electrical balance of systems (eBOS) solutions for solar power plants, in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $78 million. The acquisition supports Nextracker’s efforts to expand its portfolio of integrated, cost-efficient solar technologies.^[24][25][26]

Sustainability and legacy

In April 2024, Nextracker introduced a solar tracker system with a carbon footprint that is up to 35% lower than traditional trackers. The low-carbon tracker system, which is produced with an electric arc furnace manufacturing process and uses recycled steel, received the Carbon Trust Product Carbon Footprint Label certification.^[27][28]

In 2023 and 2024, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) teamed with Nextracker to advance PV tracker reliability during severe weather events. The company built two self-powered PV tracking systems that were deployed at the NREL’s National Wind Technology Center in Golden, Colorado for a large-scale study on the impact of severe weather on the equipment.^[29]

In 2023, Nextracker partnered with Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled to install solar PV systems at Government Primary Health Centres in Kondapur and Atmakur, both located in Sangareddy district of India. These 6 kW PV systems donated by Nextracker help bring healthcare services to 50,000 underserved residents in the region.^[30]

In 2022, Nextracker partnered with Flex Instituto de Tecnologia to launch the Brazil Center for Solar Excellence, South America’s largest solar tracker research and development facility. Located in Sorocaba, Brazil, the research center, test lab, and training facility addresses every stage of a solar tracker system’s lifecycle.^[31]