Trump’s Offer for More Solar Comes With a Catch

Unfreezing some renewable projects may have only a modest impact on US clean-power growth. US lawmakers have been at the negotiating table over a potential deal to help accelerate major energy and infrastructure projects, and the Trump administration has dangled a carrot for Democrats: unfreezing some solar and wind developments.

The administration is offering to allow some solar and wind projects to move forward, Bloomberg News reported last week. But even if the concession goes through, its impact would likely prove modest. Last week, the administration said it would prevent the stockpiling of solar equipment before new tariffs take effect in December on polysilicon, a key material in most panels.

“We would expect this and other enforcement actions to restrict supply and drive pricing higher,” Philip Shen, an analyst at Roth Capital Partners LLC, said in a research note. Costlier solar would risk making panels less competitive. Congressional Democrats are keenly aware of the totality of Trump’s efforts to thwart renewables. Bloomberg NEF has reduced its outlook for further growth, citing the elimination of a federal tax credit as well as the new polysilicon tariffs.

For Democrats, a key question is whether the deal would provide enough of a boost to renewables to be worth their support.