EIA: Solar could account for 50% of the new US electricity generated this year

The Energy Information Administration reported on Wednesday that developers are on course to add 33 gigawatts (GW) of solar power this year in the U.S., which is about half the new electricity generation capacity planned for 2025. The EIA said that if the plans were realized, the additions of large-scale solar energy in the U.S. could reach a new record. It based its analyses on a survey conducted with developers. The EIA also predicted that new battery storage systems…
Maguire: US gas-heavy pipeline to fuel tensions with LNG exporters

U.S. energy firms are building the largest gas-fired generation capacity in the world, cementing the position of the United States as the world's biggest natural gas consumer and the gas-fired producer. The growing dependence on natural gas in the domestic power sector will also exacerbate tensions between the rapidly expanding LNG export sector and the domestic power industry, as the latter is relying on cheap natural gas and abundant supplies to expand. The increasing competition between power companies and LNG exporters for U.S.
Maguire: US gas-heavy pipeline to fuel tensions with LNG exporters

U.S. energy firms are building the largest gas-fired generation capacity in the world, cementing the position of the United States as the world's biggest natural gas consumer and the gas-fired producer. The growing dependence on natural gas in the domestic power sector will also exacerbate tensions between the rapidly expanding LNG export sector and the domestic power industry, as the latter is relying on cheap natural gas and abundant supplies to expand. The increasing competition between power companies and LNG exporters for U.S.
The major South Korean petrochemical companies and their production

The South Korean government announced on Wednesday a plan for 10 petrochemical firms to restructure operations. This included a large reduction in their naphtha cracking capacity. According to the Korea Chemical Industry Association, South Korea is home to some of the world's largest petrochemical companies. South Korean producers suffered losses because of oversupply in China, which is the largest petrochemicals market, as well as a sluggish consumer demand.
China urges solar industry to reduce overcapacity

The Chinese industry ministry announced on Tuesday that it had held its second meeting in two months with representatives of the solar industry. It urged the industry to tighten regulations, reduce overcapacity, and reduce the extreme competition between firms. The ministry issued a press release in which it told the representatives to "jointly encourage the sustainable and healthy development of the industry". The statement said that parties should "curb low price disorderly competition", in reference to the overcapacity of the sector.
Solar and wind farms will be scrutinized more closely by USDA, but some projects may still continue

According to a release, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Tuesday that it would increase scrutiny of certain solar and wind energy projects. However, they did not end all support from their agency for clean energy projects in U.S. farmland. The announcement came a day following an announcement by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on X about her agency's decision to stop funding wind and solar projects on productive farmland. The agency's Tuesday press release stated that it would no longer fund larger renewable energy projects.
China urges solar industry to reduce overcapacity

The Chinese industry ministry announced on Tuesday that it had held its second meeting in two months with representatives of the solar industry. It urged the industry to tighten regulations, reduce overcapacity, and reduce the extreme competition between firms. The ministry issued a statement in which it told the representatives at the meeting to "jointly encourage the sustainable and healthy development of the industry". The statement said that parties should "curb low price disorderly competition"…
USDA Ends Programs for Solar, Wind Projects on Farms

In a Monday post on X, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture would no longer be supporting solar and wind energy projects on productive farmland. This is just the latest of a series actions taken by President Donald Trump's administration to stall the development of solar and wind energy. Trump claims that these sources of energy are unreliable and expensive and are dependent on Chinese supply chain.
USDA Ends Programs for Solar, Wind Projects on Farms
In a Monday post on X, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture would no longer be supporting solar and wind energy projects on productive farmland. This is just the latest of a series actions taken by President Donald Trump's administration to stall the development of solar and wind energy. Trump claims that these sources of energy are unreliable and expensive and are dependent on Chinese supply chain.
Trump's tax rules benefit clean energy investors

The shares of U.S. companies that produce solar energy rose Monday, after the Trump Administration released new rules on clean energy subsidies. These were less strict than many investors had expected. The Treasury Department narrowed its definition of what constitutes a solar or a wind project as being under construction. This is a requirement for qualifying for federal tax credits that are worth 30% of the project's costs. Changes include requiring that developers of large solar arrays or wind farms complete actual work…
Trump's tax rules benefit clean energy investors
The shares of U.S. companies that produce solar energy rose Monday, after the Trump Administration released new rules on clean energy subsidies. These were less strict than many investors had expected. The Treasury Department narrowed its definition of what constitutes a solar or a wind project as being under construction. This is a requirement for qualifying for federal tax credits that are worth 30% of the project's costs. Changes include requiring that developers of large solar arrays or wind farms complete actual work…
Data center owners ask US Treasury to maintain renewable energy subsidy regulations

The Data Center Coalition, which includes Google, Amazon, and Microsoft as data center owners, has called on U.S. Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent, to maintain existing rules regarding wind and solar energy subsides, stating that they have allowed the industry to grow rapidly and remain ahead of China's competition. A tighter set of rules for qualifying projects for federal tax credits on clean energy could slow the development of new power generation, at a moment when artificial intelligence and digital economy are driving a surge in demand.
T1, Corning and Corning to produce solar panels in the USA

T1 Energy, a U.S.-based solar company, and Corning, a specialty glass manufacturer, have announced a deal to create a domestic supply chain for solar panels, including polysilicon and wafers. This deal will allow T1 to meet the growing demand in the United States for panels made with American components. Solar companies are restricted from claiming clean energy tax credits under President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act if their projects include significant amounts of equipment made by "foreign entity of concern" such as China.
T1, Corning and Corning to produce solar panels in the USA
T1 Energy, a U.S.-based solar company, and Corning, a specialty glass manufacturer, have announced a deal to create a domestic supply chain for solar panels, including polysilicon and wafers. This deal will allow T1 to meet the growing demand in the United States for panels made with American components. Solar companies are restricted from claiming clean energy tax credits under President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act if their projects include significant amounts of equipment made by "foreign entity of concern" such as China.
China's fossil fuelled power rose to an 11-month peak in July

China's fossil fuelled power generation, mainly coal, increased in July to its highest level since August 20,24, according to official data released on Friday. The record-breaking heat also pushed the power demand up to new records across a large part of China. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, fossil-fuelled electricity generation, also known as thermal power in China, and mainly generated by coal, with a small portion from natural gas was up 4.3% from a year ago to 602 billion Kilowatt-hours.
Trump Administration unveils tougher rules on solar and wind subsidies
Trump's administration will likely take another step to curb the growth of renewable energies in the United States as early as Monday by making it more difficult for companies to claim federal subsidies for wind and sun energy. The Treasury Department will meet a deadline of 45 days, set in July by U.S. president Donald Trump, to revise the rules that govern who is eligible for tax credits on clean energy, which are being phased out earlier than expected under Republicans' One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
The major South Korean petrochemical companies and their production
Kim Jung-kwan, the Minister of Industry in South Korea, said that a plan will be announced this month for restructuring its ailing petrochemical industry. According to the Korea Chemical Industry Association, South Korea is home to some of the world's largest petrochemical companies. South Korean producers suffered losses because of oversupply in China, which is the largest petrochemicals market, as well as a sluggish consumer demand. According to KCIA…
Maguire: US clean energy capacity grows slower, but wider by 2025
This year, the pace of adding new solar, wind, and battery capacity in the U.S. has slowed down nationally and in some key states, which is hurting sentiment for clean energy. Climate trackers should take heart in the fact that growth has continued outside of Texas and California. According to data collected by the energy data platform Cleanview by mid-2025, combined installations of solar and wind power systems, as well as battery storage, are expected to increase by 7% by 2025 compared to the previous year.
Raychaudhuri: China's price wars are a steep battle.
Price wars have led to a collapse in profitability and an acceleration of deflation on the Chinese domestic market due to overcapacity. In response, the government launched a program called "anti-involution", which aims to counter deflationary pricing wars. This battle could last a long time. It has already seen some success, but it is still a long-term fight. Involution, the Chinese internet slang term for "competitive pressures" faced by young Chinese at school and in the workplace, was originally used to describe these pressures.
German solar industry warns of ending subsidies after Minister proposes reductions
The German solar industry warned against the proposed end of subsidies for rooftop photovoltaics systems. They argued that withdrawing support from small installations could jeopardize the country's climate targets. Feed-in subsidies have been in place for 25 years to help expand the solar energy sector. They guarantee a price for producers of renewable energy who sell their power on the grid. The German government has made progress in its goal to cover 80% of the country's electricity needs by renewable sources by 2030.
Sources say that the World Bank's IFC approved Oman Polysilicon Project loan despite US objections
Two sources familiar with board voting said that the World Bank's International Finance Corporation approved on Friday a loan and an investment of up to $250,000,000 in a polysilicon production project in Oman, for solar applications. This was despite the objections from the IFC executive director in the United States. Sources said that three other IFC executive directors, representing Germany, Netherlands, and Nordic countries, abstained on the vote for the United Solar Polysilicon Project.
Trump Administration will terminate $7 billion solar energy program
In a Thursday post on X, Administrator Lee Zeldin announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would end a $7 Billion grant program from Biden's era which aimed to increase solar energy in low-income areas. Zeldin said that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed by U.S. president Donald Trump in December last year, eliminated funding for the program. It was widely expected that the "Solar for All' program would be cancelled. Trump has reduced federal support for wind and solar energy since he took office in January.
Cox, a Spanish company, prepares a multi-billion dollar investment plan focusing on Mexico
Nacho Moreno, CEO of Spanish energy company Cox, said that the new strategic plan will be focused on Mexico where Cox plans to invest more than $10 billion by 2030 in renewable energy and water. Moreno stated that this figure includes Cox's acquisition of Iberdrola assets in the country for $4.2 billion, a deal which was "transformative" and allowed Cox already to reach the targets set by the company for 2028. The new plan will be unveiled on September 25, according to the schedule.
Adani will build India's largest privately-funded coal power plant within a decade
The group of Indian billionaire Gautam Adani will build and run a $3 billion coal fired power plant with a capacity of 2.4 gigawatts in Bihar, the company announced on Thursday. This is the largest coal plant built in India by private investment in over a decade. Adani Power announced that the first of the three units will be completed within four years and the last unit in five. After more than a decade, private investors are now returning to India's coal-based greenfield power projects.
Investors are sceptical about China's anti price war rally
Fund manager Yang Tingwu reaped his profits quickly after a furious rally in Chinese stocks of steel and cement, spurred on by Beijing's anti-price war and excessive industrial production campaign. Yang, along with many other investors does not think China's ambitious plan of pulling producers out from a spiraling deflation will succeed. It is difficult to reduce excess capacity because "closing factories hits local tax revenue, employment and GDP", said Yang, vice general manager of Tongheng Investment.
Iraqis are turning to solar power on farmland and rooftops as the country's electricity grid fails
Abdallah al-Ali, a wheat farmer in Iraq, is one of many farmers who have switched to solar panels for their irrigation systems to run during the scorching heat of summer. Iraq, a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and one of the largest oil producers in the world, has struggled with providing energy to its citizens since the 2003 U.S. invasion which toppled Saddam Hussein. The national grid has been unable to meet demand due to mismanagement and underinvestment.
AI revolution to transform Europe's outdated power plants
Microsoft and Amazon are looking to convert some of Europe's old coal and gas-fired power plants into data centres with ready access to electricity and water. Engie in France, RWE in Germany, and Enel in Italy are all looking to capitalize on the surge of AI-driven energy demands by converting their old power plants into data centres, and securing lucrative power supply agreements with their operators. The data center option is a great way…
Republican lawmakers slow down Trump Treasury picks on wind and solar credits
According to a government source and document, two Republican senators put holds on the nominations of three Treasury Department nominees by U.S. president Donald Trump over an effort made by the White House to make it more difficult for companies to claim credits for solar and wind energy projects. Senators Chuck Grassley from Iowa and John Curtis from Utah hails states with large renewable industries. They support federal tax credits to lower the cost of solar and wind farms.
First Solar increases its annual sales forecast, expecting higher prices due tariffs
First Solar increased its annual sales forecast for Thursday as the U.S. manufacturer of solar panels expects higher prices after additional tariffs against foreign-made products. After the bell, shares of the Tempe-based Arizona company rose by over 4%. Solar industry is bracing itself for the impact of U.S. president Donald Trump's policies on renewable energy and his plans to impose a tariff on most imports. The U.S. tariffs will improve the outlook of solar companies…
Trump tariffs threaten India’s export advantage; key sectors prepare for impact
U.S. president Donald Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Indian products on Wednesday, as well as an unspecified fine tied to energy and defense purchases from Russia. If enforced, this move could undermine India's competitiveness in exports and impact investor sentiment. India's surplus in trade with the U.S., its biggest export market, was 1.2% of GDP by 2024. Analysts warn that halving the surplus could reduce GDP by 25-40 basis points, undermining India’s narrative of a'safe-haven' in the face of a global recession.
Nickel demand in the Philippines is a major concern
The Philippines is ramping up its operations to meet the global demand for metals, minerals and other materials to support the green transition. "When you mine for nickel, you must remove topsoil, forest vegetation and wildlife, causing deforestation and displacement of wildlife," said Grizelda mayo-Anda. She is the director of Environmental Legal Assistance Center, a legal organization that promotes environmental rights. In response, Palawan Gov.
Spain's Cox is considering buying Iberdrola Mexico's assets, CEO of Cox says
Nacho Moreno, the chief executive of Spanish water and renewable power company Cox, said on Wednesday that it is looking at buying Iberdrola assets in Mexico as part its strategy to grow through acquisitions. It's true, that business is amazing. It's true we're just as interested in that business as we are other businesses. Moreno said that Cox considered Mexico "one of our key strategic regions". According to its website Iberdrola is in control of six wind parks, three solar parks, and other power plants, including cogeneration and gas.
India's Waaree Energies claims that the US anti-dumping investigation won't hinder solar ambitions
Waaree Energies, a manufacturer of Indian solar panels, said Tuesday it was "confident" in its exports to America and that it would be prepared to respond to any anti-dumping investigation. This came after a group of solar manufacturers accused the company of undercutting their prices. The U.S. Commerce Department has reviewed a petition submitted on 17 July by a group domestic U.S. Solar companies seeking tariffs against imports from India. Indonesia, and Laos.
Trump cuts subsidies for US clean energy, bringing an end to the boom.

Bila Solar, a Singapore-based manufacturer of solar panels, has suspended plans to double the capacity of its new Indianapolis factory. Heliene, a Canadian competitor, is reviewing its plans to build a solar-cell facility in Minnesota. NorSun, a Norwegian manufacturer of solar wafers, is evaluating the feasibility of a planned facility in Tulsa. Two offshore wind farms that are fully permitted in the U.S. Northeast could never be built. The major clean energy investments are now under question, after Republicans agreed to end U.S.
EU solar energy deployment declines for the first time in a decade due to subsidy cuts
Industry data revealed on Thursday that the European Union's solar energy expansion is set to experience its first annual decline in over a decade as some governments cut subsidies for rooftop panels. This trend is a reflection of the shifting priorities in Europe, as some countries have reduced their support for green energy or measures to reduce pollution from budgets that are already stretched due to spending on local industries and defence.
The markets bet Beijing will take action against China's overcapacity

This month, commodity prices have risen from steel to polysilicon as Chinese investors bet that Beijing will finally address overcapacity in the second largest economy of the world. The prices of nine industrial commodities, including coal, steel and polysilicon (a building block used in solar panels), alumina, and lithium carbonate, have risen by 10 to 68% over the past month, while the share prices for steelmakers, solar panel makers, and clean energy companies outpaced those for CSI 300 Index.
Enphase Energy's forecast for third-quarter revenue is below expectations, and shares fall

Enphase Energy's third-quarter revenue was below Wall Street expectations on Tuesday. President Donald Trump's tariffs on imports had an impact on its gross margin. The solar inverter manufacturer's shares fell more than 7% following hours. U.S. Trade officials finalized in April steep tariffs on the majority of solar cells imported from Southeast Asia after American manufacturers complained about companies from the area flooding the market unfairly with cheap goods.
IRENA reports that renewables are 90% cheaper than fossil fuels in the world.

A report released by the International Renewable Energy Agency on Tuesday showed that most renewable energy newly installed is cheaper to generate electricity than fossil fuels. At the COP28 U.N. Climate Conference in 2023, a target was set to triple the amount renewables such as wind and sun to stay within the 1.5 degree Celsius limit (2.7 Fahrenheit). Globally, 582 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy capacity were added in the last year. This includes hydropower, solar power, wind, and geothermal. This is nearly 20% more than 2023.