• September 11, 2026

Solar tracker and mounting system manufacturer ARRAY Technologies opened a $50 million manufacturing facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico. This 216,000-square-foot facility is approximately three times the size of ARRAY's previous Albuquerque facility, expanding its domestic manufacturing capacity and supporting around 300 production, assembly, design, engineering, customer service, and other functional positions. Established in Albuquerque over 35 years ago, ARRAY has grown from its roots in New Mexico into a global solar technology distributor, deploying over 100 gigawatts of trackers worldwide.  . "ARRAY, located here in Albuquerque, was founded, and manufacturing has always been the core of the company since its inception," said Kevin Hostler, CEO of ARRAY Technologies. "This investment reflects our confidence in ARRAY's future growth, our commitment to our customers, and our unwavering belief in the future of the U.S. solar manufacturing industry. By expanding our domestic production capacity, we are strengthening the supply chain, creating high-skilled job opportunities, and building capabilities that will enable us to serve our customers for years to come.". ” The new factory is built around lean manufacturing principles, enabling ARRAY to internalize the production of components that were historically sourced from external suppliers. Several parts manufactured at this facility qualify for the Advanced Manufacturing Production Tax Credit under Section 45X. Tim Penny, CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), stated, "The U.S. needs more low-cost, reliable electricity, and ARRAY is proving that we can achieve this by relying on American workers, American manufacturing, and American ingenuity.". ” The school will also expand vocational opportunities in skilled manufacturing in the Albuquerque area, including positions such as stamping machine operators, mold and die technicians, and process engineers. The facility is supported through a public-private partnership, including $2.5 million from the New Mexico Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) Job Creation Fund, $250,000 in LEDA funds each from the City of Albuquerque and Bernalillo County, along with partial property tax exemptions obtained via industrial revenue bonds. This LEED-certified building is designed to meet ARRAY's current manufacturing needs while providing capacity for future growth in the company's broader product portfolio. Barnerillo County is honored to have Array Technologies as a reliable and forward-thinking partner that invests in the future of our community. County Commissioner Barbara Baca stated, "Today’s expansion demonstrates the achievements we can achieve when we work together to strengthen the local economy and create high-quality jobs."

• September 10, 2026

We Recycle Solar announced the establishment of a solar panel recycling and critical material recovery facility in Texas, with plans to commence operations in the third quarter of 2027. The company claims that the factory will recycle up to 96% of silver, copper, silicon, aluminum, and glass from scrapped solar panels, producing clean and ready-to-market critical materials through fully localized processes, achieving zero overseas processing. "Photovoltaic panels contain precise critical materials urgently needed by the U.S. supply chain, but to date, no American company has been able to recycle all of these resources at such a large scale or with such efficiency," said Adam Sager, founder and CEO of We Recycle Solar. "Through our advanced processes, we are achieving truly comprehensive and complete material recycling on U.S. soil, keeping these critical materials—and the value currently lost to Asian processing—within our domestic supply chain." Located in a 10-acre corporate campus just outside Dallas, Texas, the new WRS facility will be the first in the company's planned network of critical material recycling facilities. Over the next four years, WRS intends to invest approximately $100 million to develop four additional sites across the U.S., creating a decentralized domestic processing center network aimed at reducing logistics costs and better serving commercial and utility-scale asset owners nationwide. The new facility will be built upon the existing on-site dismantling, recycling, and resale model of "We Recycle Solar," expanding the company's recycling capacity to a commercial scale, covering silicon, silver, copper, aluminum, and glass.

• September 09, 2026

SolarEdge Technologies has launched its UL 3141-certified Power Conversion System (PCS), designed to streamline the utility interconnection process while expanding on-site solar generation capabilities for commercial and industrial solar developers and installers in the U.S. In a press release, SolarEdge stated that the PCS is designed to address operational electrification, increased grid load, and stringent utility interconnection requirements. The PCS integrates certified power control directly into SolarEdge inverters, rather than relying on external controllers and custom system architectures. "Commercial clients seek to maximize the value from solar investments while avoiding unnecessary costs, complexity, and engineering efforts," said Kleber Facchini, Senior Director of Commercial & Industrial Products & Applications at SolarEdge North America. "Our UL 3141-certified commercial power control system provides installers with a simpler way to address grid limitations and design systems around evolving customer needs. As power demand continues to grow, we are helping businesses expand on-site solar generation while better utilizing their existing electrical infrastructure.". ” By integrating with SolarEdge's commercial system architecture, the PCS can reduce the need for balance of system (BOS) components by utilizing longer string configurations and fewer modules. In California, it supports commercial non-export and export-limited applications, including qualified projects compliant with Rule 21 non-export interconnection pathways. It also enables certain system expansions while retaining existing interconnection terms, including maintaining NEM 2.0 status where applicable.

• September 07, 2026

A new research brief from the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) at Ball State University found no statistically significant negative impact on residential property values near large-scale wind or utility-scale solar projects in Indiana. The briefing "Indiana's Renewable Energy and Residential Real Estate Markets" summarizes findings from two major studies conducted by the Community and Business Economics Research (CBER), which examined wind and solar energy development projects in Indiana and their impact on nearby housing values. Researchers utilized home sales data from 2004 to 2024 to compare residential property prices before and after the operation of renewable energy projects, as well as at varying distances from these projects. "This study provides specific data from Indiana on the common issues communities face when considering renewable energy projects," said Dr. Dagney Folk, director of CBER research. "Property value is an unquestionably important consideration for homeowners and local officials. Our analysis allows these discussions to be grounded in our observations of the real estate market around existing wind and solar development projects across the state." In the wind power analysis, researchers examined the sales of residential properties near commercial wind turbines in three regions of Indiana. The model found that these wind turbines had no statistically distinguishable negative impact on the sale prices of nearby houses. Solar energy analysis also found no statistically significant negative impact on housing prices. Researchers examined sales data at varying distances from utility-scale solar projects and conducted additional analyses based on project size, urban/rural location, proximity to brownfields, and power provider type. The study examining the temporal changes in housing prices also found no evidence of sustained declines in residential property prices following the commissioning of wind or solar power projects. "The advantage of studying years of actual home sales data is that we can examine what happened in the communities before and after these projects were developed," said Dr. Paul Nikamp, Assistant Professor of Economics at Miller College of Business at Ball State University. "Through the different approaches we employed, the overall findings indicate that residential property values near solar projects in Indiana were not widely negatively impacted." The researchers pointed out that their findings represent the average impact across the studied attributes and do not imply that individual attributes are immune to negative effects. They also suggested that local permitting and siting procedures designed to mitigate impacts on adjacent attributes may help explain the absence of widespread adverse effects. This new brief is part of a broader series of studies conducted by the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) at Ball State University under the Indiana Renewable Energy Siting Through ...

• September 04, 2026

The 346-megawatt Gibson City Solar Project, developed by Earthrise Energy and constructed by Burns & McDonnell, achieved commercial operation in Illinois through Earthrise Energy's surplus interconnection strategy. By connecting to an existing substation linked to adjacent gas peaking facilities, the project leveraged existing grid capacity instead of requiring new interconnections, demonstrating a method to accelerate renewable energy deployment while maintaining grid reliability. As utilities and renewable energy developers across the U.S. face increasing delays in connecting new power generation facilities to the grid, this project demonstrates a method to achieve faster renewable energy integration by leveraging existing assets. In addition to innovative grid interconnection strategies, Burns & McDonnell incorporates advanced construction techniques and terrain-following solar trackers to minimize environmental impact and enhance project execution efficiency. "Interconnection has become one of the decisive challenges facing new energy projects," said Jami Stone, construction project manager at Burns & McDonnell. "Projects like Gibson City demonstrate how developers can leverage existing infrastructure while integrating innovative construction methods to deliver new renewable power generation more efficiently. This exemplifies the industry's rethinking of traditional approaches to meet growing energy demands. We commend Earthrise Energy for providing this creative solution to accelerate the deployment of clean power.". ” The facility covers approximately 1,700 acres, spanning McLennan County and Ford County, and is expected to generate enough clean electricity to power about 46,000 households. Burns & McDonnell's scope of work included EPC services. AZCO, as Burns & McDonnell's construction subsidiary, was responsible for the self-construction of the underground electrical systems, pile driving, and the installation of trackers and modules. The project team also provided environmental support, built a 34.5/138 kV collector substation housing two substations, and constructed a power transmission line connecting to the new location of the existing Gibson City Energy Center substation. The project was completed by union labor under a national maintenance agreement. Burns and McDonald's collaborated with Nextpower to provide terrain trackers, Shoals to provide ground collection systems, and SMA to provide inverters for the project. Earthrise has purchased Runergy solar panels, high-voltage circuit breakers, and transformers. This project aims to serve multiple power purchase agreements. To support this coordinated operation, Burns and McDonald designed and debugged the monitoring and data acquisition (SCADA) system for the project, providing necessary control functions for the safe management of power generation resources. The Gibson construction site has also become a testing ground for the next generation of building automati...

• September 03, 2026

The 347-megawatt direct current SunRoper solar project in Ward County, Texas, has commenced construction. SunRoper is expected to begin operations in December 2027 and will deliver electricity to the ERCOT grid. "SunRoper demonstrated how strategic partnerships can help meet Texas's growing electricity demand through investments in critical energy infrastructure," said Sabah Bayatli, president of OCI Energy, one of the project developers. "Today's groundbreaking also marks the beginning of a significant new chapter between OCI Energy and Arava Power, reflecting the power of collaboration in development, financing, construction, and energy procurement.". ” SunRoper is being developed jointly by OCI Energy and Arava Power, an Israeli renewable energy developer. The solar project is being constructed by WHC, an international construction company headquartered in Louisiana, USA. According to a press release, a Fortune 500 company has signed a power purchase agreement to buy a portion of the electricity generated by the solar project. WHC is honored to serve as the EPC contractor for the SunRoper Solar Project, applying our construction expertise to this initiative that will provide critical power infrastructure for the Houston area. Randy Badeaux, President of WHC North America Power, stated, "Achieving this milestone reflects months of meticulous planning and coordination with OCI Energy, Arava Power, and our project partners. We look forward to completing the project safely and with high-quality construction by 2027."

• August 31, 2026

MARS Energy Group announced the acquisition of Citadel Roofing & Solar, a contractor based in Northern California. This acquisition adds over 1,000 employees to the MARS platform. The company stated that this collaboration will expand MARS's business footprint in California and further strengthen its integrated platform combining residential roofs and solar power. Citadel's leading position in the newly developed rooftop and solar markets in Northern California complements MARS's extensive capabilities in commercial and residential energy solutions, enabling the combined organization to better support homebuilders across California, broaden its service offerings, and invest in technological and operational excellence. "There are acquisitions, and there are also partnerships that are destined to become collaborations," said Manendra Saxena, founder, chairman, and CEO of MARS Energy Group. "Castle is the latter. Diet and the entire Castle team have built a remarkable enterprise renowned for exceptional operations, strong client relationships, and a stellar culture. From our initial conversations, our values and vision aligned perfectly, and everything felt right. This collaboration is not about changing the elements that have made Castle successful. It's about investing in them. We will continue to grow together on this platform, retaining the key talent, culture, and client focus that define both organizations." Citadel will continue to operate under the leadership of Dieter Folk, Helmut Gehle, Eric Owen, Wendi Zubillaga, Stephanie Crichton, Jeff Maxfield, and other members of the existing management team. Clients will continue to work with the same team they are familiar with and trust. "This partnership marks an exciting new chapter for Citadel," said Diet Fock, President of Citadel Roofing & Solar. "As we look to the future, finding a partner who believes in our people, respects our culture, and is as committed as we are to serving customers the right way is essential. We found this in MARS. Joining this platform provides us with additional resources, operational support, and the space to continue growing while preserving the values and relationships that have made Citadel successful. Our employees, customers, and partners can expect the same team and commitment to excellence, now backed by a stronger platform."

• August 28, 2026

The California legislature passed a bill allowing residents to install balcony solar systems. The bill is now awaiting the governor's signature. Senate Bill No. 868, also known as the "Plug-and-Play Solar Act," will eliminate bureaucratic hurdles that have long prevented the installation of small-scale systems in apartments, condominiums, and single-family homes. This legislation will also ensure that these systems meet stringent safety standards. The bill was introduced by Senator Scott Wiener (Democrat, San Francisco) and was initiated by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) and the Abundant Network. After passing the Senate, SB 868 will be submitted to Governor Gavin Newsom for signing. "This is currently the most exciting clean energy solution," said Bernadette Del Chiaro, Senior Vice President of the EWG in California. "With this bill, California is poised to open the door for average consumers, offering a truly practical and affordable solution." SB 868 will allow homeowners and tenants to purchase portable solar panels from retailers and plug them in for use without first obtaining a grid connection agreement from the utility company. The time and cost required to secure such agreements have long been a barrier to the large-scale deployment of these systems. The parliament amended the bill by adding a provision that would revoke internet immunity on January 1, 2030—as requested by utility companies—but Senate Bill 868 grants the market four years to prepare and allows the legislature to revisit the repeal in the future. SB 868 will also ensure these plug-and-play systems comply with stringent safety standards. All systems must be certified by UL or equivalent national testing laboratories. To protect utility workers and prevent electrical hazards, the systems must automatically shut down within seconds in the event of a grid failure. With a maximum capacity of 1,200 watts, the systems can power everyday appliances such as refrigerators, lighting fixtures, Wi-Fi routers, and air conditioners. California is not the first state to eliminate balcony solar restrictions. Utah became the first in 2025, and eight other states have passed similar laws since then. California, along with New York, is another state where a balcony solar bill awaits the governor's signature on his desk. Governor Newsom has 30 days to take action on Senate Bill 868. "California may not be the first to act, but we are the biggest prize," said Del Chiara. "If Governor Newsom signs this bill into law, the scale of our market will undergo a fundamental transformation, accelerating the adoption of this brilliant new approach to addressing climate change and making energy affordable."

• August 27, 2026

ForeFront Power is completing a solar and energy storage project in Ventura County, California. At the county government center, a 5.8-megawatt solar canopy will be paired with a 1.9-megawatt battery. The megawatt-hour capacity of the battery was not specified in detail. Although Ventura County has ensured renewable power through community-selected energy procurement, this project offers a more cost-effective pathway to achieving its sustainability goals by locally producing and storing clean energy, thereby reducing costs, improving budget predictability, and enhancing energy resilience. "Every dollar we save in operational costs allows us to better utilize taxpayer funds," said Thomas Hunter, Director of General Services for Ventura County. "This project serves as a prime example—a wise long-term investment that reduces our energy costs, provides more predictable expenditures, and delivers lasting value to our residents." The project was developed with zero upfront costs to the county government through a power purchase agreement (PPA) signed with ForeFront Power, which will be responsible for designing, owning, and maintaining the solar and battery energy storage systems for the county. It is projected that the project will save the county over $21 million in energy costs over the next 20 years. "Public institutions should not feel helpless when paying energy premiums, as they can save costs and enhance resilience through on-site generation and energy storage," said Ruben R. Fontes, CEO of ForeFront Power. "We handle the complexity of the development process so that Ventura County can accelerate its transition to renewable energy without upfront costs or increased administrative burdens. The county will obtain economical energy at low and predictable prices for 20 years, while we bear the risks of building and maintaining it."