The Department of Energy (DOE) canceled a Biden administration multi-billion-dollar partial loan guarantee to a green energy company facing financial instability and a history of alleged misconduct.
In 2023, the Biden DOE announced a $3 billion partial loan guarantee to Sunnova Energy, a Houston-based company that provides solar panels and EV chargers, in furtherance of its broader green energy agenda. The Trump DOE canceled the loan guarantee Wednesday, dealing a blow to Sunnova— which has been accused in the past of ripping off elderly customers — as it navigates financial struggles, according to Reuters.
At the time it was announced, the Biden DOE guarantee was considered the largest loan commitment ever made by the government to a solar company. Sunnova has drawn scrutiny for allegedly exploiting dementia patients by signing them up for expensive, long-term solar panel contracts, The Washington Free Beacon reported in November 2023.
During the Biden administration’s lame duck period, the DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) — the office that made the deal with Sunnova — extended tens of billions of dollars in new loans. Critics have questioned the efficacy of LPO, arguing that the office props up questionable businesses that might not otherwise survive in a competitive market at taxpayers’ expense.
Furthermore, Jigar Shah, the LPO’s director under the Biden administration, has been criticized for providing taxpayer-funded loans to companies linked to a trade association he helped establish prior to working for the federal government.
In March, Sunnova expressed “substantial doubt” about its ability to continue operations, citing inadequate cash flow and high interest rates. The company had accessed about $371 million of the guaranteed funds before the DOE withdrew the guarantee, according to Bloomberg News.
The loan cancellation reflects a broader shift in energy policy under the Trump administration away from Biden’s green agenda. Trump’s DOE “will deploy capital only if it’s in the best interest of American taxpayers,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright told the Daily Caller News Foundation in March.
“The first and primary tool is private capital and private businesses. Most of these things, with a reasonable business climate, will happen in the marketplace,” Wright said at the time.
Neither the DOE nor Sunnova responded to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.
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