This is your SolarWakeup for February 13th
TVA Our Way. I don’t know why we didn’t do exactly this over the past 15 years. TVA has the potential to be the postcard from the future if we aligned our political strength to put solar advocates on the board. I’ve been saying this for the better part of two decades, but always got some political answer about how TVA Senators handle the board appointment. I guess this administration didn’t get that memo.
News
1 Utility Dive:
TVA board, remade by Trump, votes to keep coal plants open
2 CNN:
Trump delivers a deadly blow to EPA’s ability to regulate climate pollution
3 Reuters:
US publishes interim tax credit rules meant to restrict China clean energy influence
4 Bloomberg:
Singapore Boosts Modest 2030 Solar Power Installation Target
5 New York Times:
Stuck With an Empty Factory, Ford Seeks a New Market
6 PV-Tech:
UK awards 4.9GW solar PV in latest CfD round
7 Energy Storage News:
Tesla set to launch vehicle-to-grid programme in the US
8 PV-Magazine:
Solar for Women announces spring 2026 webinar series on workforce development
Opinions:
9 Canary Media:
A new Ohio bill could be a de facto statewide ban on solar and wind
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for February 12th
Public Solar. Many of you are solar people, I think you know what I mean by that, and SOLV’s CEO, George Hershman is at the very top of that list. Yesterday, SOLV went public on the NASDAQ, raising $513mm before the stock rose another 20% in its first day of trading. SOLV, which is trading under the ticker MWH, has grown out of Swinerton before scaling to what it is today as one of the biggest EPCs in the market. I’m happy to call George a friend and very excited for his team including other solar lifers for getting to this point. Now George joins the public company CEO club in solar that is ever expanding, which is a great thing to have in our market.
News
1 CNBC:
SOLV Energy CEO on IPO debut
2 Utility Dive:
CAISO shifts transmission focus to reliability to meet peak demand growth
3 New York Times:
Trump Orders the Pentagon to Buy More Coal-Fired Electricity
4 Reuters:
Norway wealth fund seeks battery storage investment as market matures
5 PV-Tech:
National Laboratory of the Rockies lays off 130 employees
6 Canary Media:
NineDot Energy raises big money for small batteries in New York City
7 PV-Magazine:
High-voltage DC solar architecture solves the AI datacenter bottleneck
Opinions:
8 Energy Storage News:
Europe’s energy storage buildout
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for February 10th
Opinion
News
1 Reuters:
Rising US industrial load intensifies power generation need
2 Bloomberg:
Deep Freeze More Than Doubled Power Costs on Biggest US Grid
3 Utility Dive:
Natural gas installations more than doubled in 2025
4 PV-Tech:
EU Commission approves €3 billion German clean energy manufacturing scheme
5 Energy Storage News:
FlexGen begins operating 700MWh total BESS in Wisconsin, Iowa for Alliant Energy
6 Canary Media:
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl show had a big message about Puerto Rico’s grid
Opinions:
7 PV-Magazine:
ERCOT BESS interconnection applications drop 50% in H2 2025 as faults in the boom emerge
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for February 6th
Solar IPOs Hot Again. It’s time to start the public company CEO group chat (this is just a joke!) But with Forgent going public, NEOS partners strike again with their third major renewables-related IPO in this decade. Next week, we could see another solar EPC go public and that’s a great thing for many of our friends and their investors. It’s also great for the solar market and other companies that see this path to liquidity and capital reopening for solar.
News
1 Bloomberg:
Forgent Power Shares Advance 7.4% After $1.5 Billion IPO
2 Seattle Times:
Amazon outbids WA utility for one of nation’s largest solar projects
3 Utility Dive:
Federal energy assistance programs survive budget gauntlet
4 Reuters:
US rooftop solar installers cut jobs, restructure as homeowner subsidy expires
5 Energy Storage News:
Aypa Power closes US$1.5 billion credit facility for US BESS projects
6 Canary Media:
Massachusetts scrutinizes pipeline-safety program as gas bills spike
7 PV-Magazine:
State legislatures consider bills to speed solar project deployment
Opinions:
8 PV-Tech:
What are the latest issues with TOPCon solar panels?
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for February 5th
Opinion
News
1 New York Times:
A Trump ‘Blockade’ Is Stalling Hundreds of Wind and Solar Projects Nationwide
2 Utility Dive:
TVA pursues 6.2 GW of new generation, citing data centers, population growth
3 Bloomberg:
Power Equipment Maker Forgent, Backers Raise $1.5 Billion in IPO
4 Reuters:
Chinese solar shares jump on reports of Musk-linked visits, some firms deny cooperation
5 PV-Tech:
Cost the key consideration in European supply chains as reliance on China remains
6 Energy Storage News:
Standalone solar no longer enough in Europe as storage takes centre stage
7 Canary Media:
California has abundant solar power. Here’s how factories can use it.
8 PV-Magazine:
Lunar Energy raises $232 million to accelerate development of residential storage, VPP software
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for February 4th
Opinion
News
1 Bloomberg:
Texas Considers Revisiting Some Data Center Grid Approvals
2 New York Times:
Why U.S. Car Companies Want to Make Giant Batteries
3 Canary Media:
Colorado co-ops to Trump
4 Utility Dive:
Tesla sets battery storage deployment record in Q4 as EV sales slump
5 Reuters:
Saudi Arabia to build $2 billion solar farms in Turkey, Turkish energy minister says
6 Energy Storage News:
‘Scrutinising origin, ownership, and control’
7 PV-Magazine:
U.S.-India trade deal reduces solar tariffs
Opinions:
8 PV-Tech:
‘Difficult’ to make EU solar procurement initiatives work ‘on the ground’, developers say
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for February 2nd
It’s Getting Cold Outside. Grab your ice scrapers because the weather this weekend was out of control. I’m usually the one laughing at the rest of the Country given that I sit in Fort Lauderdale but yesterday morning we woke up to a balmy 37 degrees with a wind chill making it feel like mid twenties. I assume that our grid measured a new record or something near given that most Floridians heat their homes quite inefficiently.
News
1 Canary Media:
The 4 lessons New England’s grid can learn from Winter Storm Fern
2 Utility Dive:
NERC forecasts peak demand to rise 24% on new data center loads
3 Bloomberg:
SpaceX Seeks FCC Nod to Build Data Center Constellation in Space
5 Reuters:
SOLV Energy targets $5 billion valuation in US IPO
6 PV-Tech:
‘Clear and concerning’ rise in PV module defects – Kiwa PI Berlin
7 Solar Power World:
Tesla claims it’s making solar panels again at its Buffalo factory
8 Energy Storage News:
Battery recycler Redwood receives financing boost from Google, aims to expand US energy storage division
9 PV-Magazine:
Uncertainty looms as solar PPA prices climb for second straight quarter
Opinions:
10 New York Times:
Three Hours of Free Power and Other Ideas to Lower Utility Bills
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 30th
Last Testimonials. Today marks the end of Abby Hopper’s tenure as the CEO of SEIA. I was her first interview when she joined the trade association and I’d be lying if I didn’t have some skepticism but Abby never shied away from telling her story and solar’s story. Over the next 9 years, the skepticism turned to trust and friendship. So it’s fitting that in her last week, she’s talking to the Senate about the importance of permitting and cutting red tape. I’m excited for her to take some time off and do great things in the future. Meanwhile, Darren Van’t Hof takes the reigns as the interim CEO as the search committee looks for a permanent replacement. If you want to share some public words about Abby, feel free to send them this way and I’ll publish those that come in.
News
1 Solar Builder:
SEIA CEO emphasizes permitting reform in Senate committee testimony
2 Utility Dive:
Republican, Democratic senators call for project certainty at permitting reform hearing
3 Bloomberg:
Texas Data Centers, Crypto Miners Reduced Power During Storm
4 Axios:
Tesla discontinuing Model S and Model X electric vehicles, Elon Musk says
5 Reuters:
US faces growing risks of power outages due to rising winter demand, changing fuel mix
6 PV-Tech:
Rising Chinese module prices will be ‘short-term’, says Rystad Energy
7 Energy Storage News:
European Union battery storage market entered ‘new phase of scale and maturity’ in 2025, but ‘still has a long way to go’
8 Canary Media:
Tesla launches its own solar panel as its EV business falters
9 PV-Magazine:
Maryland residential solar market stifled by permitting and interconnection delays, report finds
Opinions:
10 New York Times:
It’s Very Cold. Just Wait for the Grid to Fail.
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 28th
Opinion
News
1 Financial Times:
US solar sector navigates loss of crucial tax credits
2 Solar Power World:
Maryland introduces legislation to curb energy costs, spur solar development
3 Bloomberg:
Climate Lessons for Democrats and Four Other Takeaways From the BNEF Summit
4 New York Times:
America Officially Leaves the Paris Climate Agreement. For the Second Time.
5 Axios:
Electricity grid is holding up despite outages, analysts say
6 Reuters:
Power plant outages surge in Eastern US amid restricted gas supplies and frigid weather
7 PV-Tech:
Global clean energy investment hits record US$2.3 trillion in 2025
8 Energy Storage News:
‘Greater acceptance of merchant exposure’ in UK market, investment firm says
9 Canary Media:
North Carolina may use batteries to give new life to old solar farms
Opinions:
10 PV-Magazine:
Ohm Analytics 2025 VPP market report reveals 21% growth in overall capacity
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 26th
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
Electricity grid is holding up despite outages, analysts say
2 Reuerts:
Power plant outages surge in Eastern US amid restricted gas supplies and frigid weather
3 PV-Tech:
Hecate Energy to list on Nasdaq in US$1.2 billion SPAC deal
4 Utility Dive:
PJM cost concerns bleed into transmission planning
5 BLoomberg:
Why Batteries Are About to Have a Moment in Brazil
6 Energy Storage News:
Fortescue claims ‘record-low pricing’ for large-scale battery storage in Australia
7 PV-Magazine:
U.S., Europe on track for 2030 solar goals despite pipeline gaps
Have a great day!
Yann
