Why is an essentially bankrupt Chinese solar company that had already furloughed most of its staff receiving $5 to $10 million from the U.S. treasury?

A new report released by Ernst & Young shows that power and utility deals in the Americas saw huge drops in volume and value due to the Covid-19 pandemic, though commitment to renewable investment remains strong.

Outside of a 12-month promotional period where customers don’t have to make payments on the system, Mosaic’s newest offering, PowerSwitch Zero, also includes a contactless sales tool and and installer partnership product.

The U.S. solar and storage industry is figuring out how to exchange information without exchanging Covid-19.

Another stalwart of the solar industry was able to take the necessary precautions in order to maintain some sense of normalcy during the pandemic, leading to a quarter of increased sales, net cash and a positive outlook to finish off the year.

As the state looks to achieve its its 70% by 2030 renewable electricity goal, community solar is taking center stage, with the announcement of New York’s first community solar-plus-storage project and a municipal opt-out community solar pilot.

Even four years of the most pro-coal president in recent memory has done little to change coal’s misfortunes.

Carbon monitoring, accounting and sequestration startups are in vogue — as is raising late-stage capital via a SPAC. Plus $30M for small-scale utility and community solar.

Not all solar projects are created equal — a new report from Clearloop, Downstream Strategies and WattTime outlines the areas in the country where development would make the biggest difference in reducing emissions and cleaning the grid.

With installers and developers needing to squeeze every kilowatt-hour out of every roof and project, racking and trackers are the unsung heroes that secure and tilt panels while maximizing output and protecting wiring and other gear.

Li-Cycle, a Canadian battery recycling firm, has chosen Rochester as the home for its planned $175 million recycling facility, which promises to deliver recycled battery materials, beyond just lithium-ion, at market scale.

More than 1 GW of subsidized small solar arrays were installed in China last month alone and manufacturer Suntech has announced the start of operations at its 500 MW Indonesian cell and module fab.

The 1 GW fifth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai will feature NX Horizon trackers with the deal announced after the manufacturer published new bifacial yield gain claims.

Also in the brief: 67-MWdc Lotus Solar Farm in Madera County, California, developed by 8minute Solar Energy, is now fully operational. Plus First Solar’s secondary offering for the Waltons, and Natron gets $20 million for battery scale-up.

Tesla battery day is next week. Earlier this year, Musk told analysts that what he had to say “will blow your mind. It blows my mind.” Here’s a list of battery hyperbole and terms you’re bound to hear at the event.

Solar financing and mergers are booming in the C&I sector, while tax equity draws new players into the market, and a 50 GW utility-scale pipeline drives innovation across the industry.

The two energy giants have announced their intent to pivot away from fossil fuel generating assets and expand their renewable footprints.

Two new reports see federal R&D dollars for energy innovation as critical for driving the economy’s post-Covid recovery and keeping the U.S. competitive and on the leading edge of the global energy transition. 

Also in the brief: Re-retiring Maui’s 72-year-old, 38-MW oil-fired plant — by adding more solar-plus-storage. Colorado Springs Utilities plans for a 175-MW solar farm to be coupled with a 25 MW battery storage system, all built and installed by Boulder-based juwi.

Executive, career and boardroom moves in solar, storage, cleantech, utilities and energy VC.

Researchers have sounded the alarm. If no serious efforts are made on second-life battery use, recycling and vehicle-to-grid applications, decarbonization efforts may hit the buffers a lot sooner than expected.

A study into the benefits of linking solar with hydro in a full hybrid system configuration has found global potential of 7,593 GW, for an estimated annual power generation of 10,616 TWh and a 20% reservoir coverage.

To address developers’ frustrations with its interconnection process, Duke Energy worked with solar industry associations to map out a second proposal aimed at rationalizing its interconnection process in 2022, after the existing queue is cleared.

With $32 million in series B funding and an ever-growing project pipeline, air-based tracker startup, Sunfolding, is hoping to increase its hold in the tracker market with tech that’s simple, light and can be installed on terrain previously thought untouchable.

Terabase wins a $6 million Round A led by SJF Ventures, an early funder of Nextracker, for an integrated software platform to make building utility-scale solar more efficient, smarter and cheaper.