Our History

SCHOLL CANYON LFG
Glendale, CA 20MW

Four decades and $2.65 billion of renewable energy experience.

In 1974, Palmer was founded to work with privately-held companies in connection with their need for financing, equipment leasing, acquisitions, and divestitures. While working in various fields, our team realized there was a need for private financing of renewable energy sources. Deciding that we were equipped to fill this gap, Palmer took on the financing for a number of projects. After seeing the lack of development expertise in this emerging industry firsthand, we began developing projects ourselves. Thus, in 1981 Palmer pivoted to developing, financing, constructing, and managing alternative energy projects in the United States.

As a pioneer in this space, Palmer brought to fruition:

the first commercial landfill gas-to-electric project
the largest privately owned wood-fired power plant in New England at the time
the largest U.S. tax credit monetization program for landfill gas

After successfully developing numerous award-winning projects across a diverse span of technologies, Palmer honed its focus to where we knew we could make the greatest environmental impact: wind, solar, and other renewable energy project development.

SCHOLL CANYON LFG
Glendale, CA 20MW

The lessons of prior decades provide a solid foundation for Palmer’s pipeline of projects, making us well-equipped to handle the obstacles of project development. Our team has worked coast to coast, across technologies, and with stakeholders ranging from entrepreneurs to major government entities. Four decades and $2.65 billion later, Palmer still custom-designs projects with local needs in mind to generate regional and global benefits.

Gordon L. Deane, the President of Palmer, has been leading Palmer’s energy efforts since 1981. During this time, Gordon has been involved in all aspects of developing, financing, and managing non-conventional energy projects for Palmer involving over $2.6 billion of financing and ranging from Maine to Hawaii. He has also provided consulting services to the US Department of Commerce on energy project development and financing in several foreign countries.

Prior to joining Palmer, Gordon served as a consultant to the US EPA and several state environmental organizations. He was also the manager of a 6-state alternative energy program sponsored by the New England Regional Commission and the US Department of Energy. Gordon is the current Chair of the Board of NTBG and also sits on the boards of other non-profit and for-profit entities.

Gordon has a BA with Honors in Physics from Oberlin College and an MS in Environmental Science from Harvard University.