This is your SolarWakeup for May 20th 2025
Opinion
News
1 Reuters:
House bill would choke US solar investment, says top trade group
2 PV-Magazine:
U.S. solar and storage industry calls for changes in reconciliation bill
3 Politico:
China’s head start on clean energy is shaping the debate on the Republicans’ megabill
4 New York Times:
Trump Turns a Blind Eye to Climate Change
5 Bloomberg:
Trump Allows Halted NY Offshore Wind Project to Resume Work
6 PV-Tech:
European IPPs navigate rising negative power price challenge with new strategies
7 Solar Power World:
SMA to begin assembling medium-voltage power stations in the U.S. in 2026
8 Canary Media:
Federal regulators reject MISO’s plan to fast-track gas plants
Opinions:
9 Energy Storage News:
ESS Inc. bets on gigawatt-hour scale long-duration flow batteries to turn cash burn into profitability
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 19th 2025
Off To Phoenix. Greetings from the skies as I head to Phoenix for the ACP conference. Of course all the talk will be tariffs and reconciliation bill but also how to make your Capex investments go further, especially in a continuously tight labor market. Software will also keep rearing its head in storage and trackers, look at cyber talk to get louder in the coming weeks. See you out there!
News
1 New York Times:
Data Centers’ Hunger for Energy Could Raise All Electric Bills
2 PV-Magazine:
Solar opportunity as datacenter electricity demand expected to triple in five years
3 Houston Chronicle:
It's hot already!? Thank wind and solar for keeping your AC humming. | Editorial
4 Bloomberg:
China Solar Firms to Speed Up Global Push Amid Tariff Truce
5 Utility Dive:
Solar companies compete to advance tandem cell technology
6 Reuters:
US rooftop solar companies say Republican House bill would be a major setback
7 PV-Tech:
Google, energyRe ink 600MW REC deal to support data centres
8 Energy Storage News:
Will the 90-day US-China tariff pause lead to stockpiling or further paralysis for the BESS industry?
Opinions:
9 Axios:
Electric vehicle charging gets a badly needed do-over
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 14th 2025
Opinion
News
1 Bloomberg:
Senate Republicans Balk at House Plan to Gut Energy Tax Cuts
2 Reuters:
Last-ditch lobbying blitz seeks to save Biden's clean-energy tax credits
3 Axios:
Despite "drill baby drill," oil production seen to drop slightly
4 UTility Dive:
Electricity consumption is rising, driving solar, storage expansion - EIA
5 PV-Magazine:
Proposed rule changes for Foreign Entities of Concern could alter solar supply chains
6 PV-Tech:
Complex expertise, standardised processes and cybersecurity concerns
7 Energy Storage News:
US and China put 90-day pause on tariffs, effective duty on BESS falls to c.60%
Opinions:
8 Canary Media:
Amid tariff uncertainty, US grid battery industry faces an uphill climb
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 12th 2025
GREAT PROGRESS MADE! With US and China delegations meeting in Geneva over the weekend, the White House is touting that great progress has been made towards resetting trade relations between the two largest trading partners on the globe. There are few things that could be as catalyzing towards restarting the US economy as certainty on this topic and alongside the bipartisan infrastructure and CHiPS acts rebuilding amazing domestic infrastructure. With the IRA contributing enormous solar manufacturing gains towards American Energy Dominance, we could be on the way to getting back on track.
News
1 Fox News:
Trump says 'total reset negotiated' with China during tariff talks in Geneva
2 Utility Dive:
IRA’s fate unclear as Republicans look to finance megabill
3 PV-Magazine:
House Republicans warn electricity costs will rise under clean energy tax credit repeal
4 Bloomberg:
Trump’s Thirst for Cheap Oil Irks an Industry He Loves to Praise
5 New York Times:
There Is No ‘Energy Emergency,’ a New Lawsuit Claims
6 The Hill:
Texas Senate passes bill requiring solar plants to provide power at night
7 PV-Tech:
A ‘business as usual’ Intersolar 2025 for big PV manufacturers, as they predict industry consolidation
8 Renewable Energy World:
Tariff uncertainty forces global energy storage company to pause active US projects
9 Energy Storage News:
BESS industry starts to diversify away from 20-foot container, back to modular
Opinions:
10 Canary Media:
States fight back against Trump’s wind and EV attacks
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 9th 2025
Opinion
News
1 Bloomberg:
Pope Leo XIV Might Be the Climate Champion We Need
2 Politico:
Johnson targets smaller tax package with $1.5T in spending cuts
3 Reuters:
Republican US lawmakers voice support for IRA energy tax credits
4 Utility Dive:
PJM, utilities urge FERC to dismiss call for colocation settlement talks
5 Solar Power World:
Energy storage developer Hecate Grid rebrands as Fullmark Energy
7 Energy Storage News:
Virginia governor vetoes energy storage legislation
8 Canary Media:
New California bill would undo some 20-year rooftop solar contracts
Opinions:
9 PV-Magazine:
Sunrun posts positive cash generation, rises on Q1 earnings report
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 8th 2025
Greetings From Munich. Intersolar still shows up in droves. Some 15+ convention halls filled with booths covering every imaginable angle of the solar and storage markets. My first Intersolar, in Freiburg, was also a large show, this one gives credibility to the enormous financial impact that solar has on the world and its importance to the energy infrastructure. When we look at the blackout in Spain last week, which looks to have started due to a trip on a large power plant, we’ll start to see how other flexible resources can be used to ramp up and holdover during grid instability moments.
News
1 PV-Tech:
‘Rocky road ahead’ for US solar, SEIA CEO warns
2 Utility Dive:
Texas renewables restrictions could increase power prices by 14% in 2035
3 NBC:
Puerto Rico governor under fire as federal funds for solar projects are stalled
4 Reuters:
US tariffs, Europe slowdown reshape global solar panels trade
5 Solar Power World:
Sunrun launches new solar/storage subscription that ‘flexes’ with changing power needs
6 Energy storage News:
SolarPower Europe forecasts 45% CAGR for battery storage to 2029, urges policymakers to do more
7 PV-Magazine:
Tariffs reshape project economics for U.S. energy storage
Opinions:
8 Axios:
Why cars will never be smartphones on wheels
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 7th 2025
Opinion
News
1 Utility Dive:
Trump proposes slashing DOE budget by $19.3B
2 PV-Magazine:
SolarEdge rebounds on Q1 earnings surprise
3 Bloomberg:
Buffett Handing Complicated Climate Legacy to Berkshire Energy Head
4 Axios:
AI development's other challenge besides power
5 New York Times:
Trump Is Picking New Climate Fights With States. Here’s Why.
6 Reuters:
Trump funding cuts force layoffs at US renewable energy research lab
7 Energy storage news:
OCI Energy on 4-hour Texas BESS and what US-China tariffs mean for procurement
Opinions:
8 PV-Magazine:
Floating PV needs policy and incentives to realise considerable potential
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 5th 2025
Our Latest Quarter. On Thursday I spoke to the market about FTC Solar’s latest quarter and the progress were making in our execution. Our revenues continue to steadily rise as many of you recognize the technology that FTC makes has improved labor efficiency and innovates on many fronts. With our team rising to the occasion and growing, we’re in a great spot to keep up the momentum. The business is made up of the innovative 1P tracker and our amazing team, you can find both in Munich this week at the Intersolar show, booth A5.131. If you need to get in touch with someone from my team, just let me know.
News
1 PV-Magazine:
FTC Solar revenue jumps 58% in Q1
2 Reuters:
Dominion beats quarterly estimates on Virginia, South Carolina power demand
3 Utility Dive:
Corning increased solar Michigan facility investment to $1.5B
4 Bloomberg:
Buffett Exit to Lift Energy Executive Abel to Berkshire CEO
5 Axios:
New report sees corporate climate risk tripling by 2050
6 PV-Tech:
Stonepeak acquires stake in Repsol’s 777MW US solar-plus-storage portfolio
7 Energy Storage News:
Cygni Energy opens 4.8GWh BESS assembly plant in Hyderabad, India
8 Canary Media:
Chart - Clean energy dominated global power construction in 2024
Opinions:
9 New York Times:
What Australia’s Vote Means for Climate in a Major Coal Economy
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 2nd 2025
Intersolar Europe. Are you heading to Munich for Intersolar? I will be there alongside my FTC Solar colleagues to talk about all things smart trackers and how we’re aggressively rewriting the roadmap for helping asset owners to get their trackers to work smarter for them. Reach out if you’ll be in town!
News
1 Reuters:
Spain's grid denies dependence on solar power to blame for blackout
2 Bloomberg:
Brookfield Weighs US Manufacturing Investment Following Tariffs
3 Axios:
From subs to bases, "climate change crap" has consequences for U.S. military
4 CNBC:
First Solar stock plunges as CEO says Trump tariffs pose ‘significant economic headwind’
5 PV-Tech:
Hanwha to buy REC Silicon for US$88.8 million, shareholders criticise ‘lowball’ offer
6 Wall Street Journal:
Solar-Panel Installer Sunnova Prepares for Bankruptcy Filing Within Weeks
7 Utility Dive:
Policy uncertainty could trigger ‘recession’ for renewables, analyst says
8 Energy Storage News:
Fluence to provide BESS for NTR’s grid-forming Finland project
9 Canary Media:
North Carolina factories and mills cool on clean energy transition
10 PV-Magazine:
Legislators call for increased transparency with PJM
Opinions:
11 New York Times:
Climate Change Urgency Has Declined. The Green Transition Hasn’t.
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for April 30th 2025
Intersolar Europe. Are you heading to Munich for Intersolar? I will be there alongside my FTC Solar colleagues to talk about all things smart trackers and how we’re aggressively rewriting the roadmap for helping asset owners to get their trackers to work smarter for them. Reach out if you’ll be in town!
News
1 Bloomberg:
The Five Seconds That Plunged Spain Into Darkness
2 UtilityDive:
MISO summer capacity prices jump to $666.50/MW-day as power supplies shrink
3 The Hill:
Restrictions on wind, solar unpopular among Texas Republicans
4 PV-Magazine:
U.S. residential solar falls to lowest-ever $2.50 per watt, said EnergySage
5 Reuters:
Spanish grid operator's first assessment rules out cyberattack behind blackout
6 Solar Builder:
U.S. energy storage industry commits $100 billion in domestic batteries
7 PV-Tech:
Nexamp secures US$340 million financing for US distributed solar and energy storage
8 Solar Power World:
Panasonic quits solar and energy storage business
9 Canary Media:
Community solar is winning over Republican lawmakers around the US
Opinions:
10 New York Times:
Trump’s 100 Days of Upending Climate Policy
Have a great day!
Yann
