Tax equity financing transactions have become an increasingly popular way to provide a higher rate of return for outside investors and to help developers monetize an otherwise cost prohibitive project. In a recent Tax Court decision, Olsen v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2021-41 (6 April 2021), the taxpayers invested in such a venture, but the result was a complete disallowance of all tax benefits because the investment was simply too good to be true and (according to the Department of Justice) a tax shelter. For individual taxpayers in particular, this case is an effective lesson on how not to structure investments in energy equipment transactions.
