Solyndra received a $535 million U.S. Department of Energy loan guarantee, the first recipient of a loan guarantee under President Barack Obama's economic stimulus program, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.[18] The loan program took a $528 million loss from Solyndra.[19][20] Additionally, Solyndra received a $25.1 million tax break from California's Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority.[21] SoloPower also received similar funding from the U.S. Department of Energy.[22]

Following the bankruptcy, the government had expected to recoup $27 million under the Solyndra restructuring plan, or up to 100% of loaned funds from a $1.5 billion lawsuit filed against Chinese polysilicon solar-panel makers for alleged price fixing.[3] The outcomes of the lawsuits were that, in November 2015, Yingli Green Energy Holding Co Ltd. settled a claim filed by Solyndra for $7.5 million, and in April 2016 Trina Solar Ltd. settled a claim filed by Solyndra for $45 million. In June 2016 a Stipulation Of Dismissal was filed jointly between Solyndra and Suntech Power Holdings Co Ltd. and later signed by Hon. Saundra B. Armstrong on November 30, 2017.[23]

Between 2009 and mid-2011 the price of polysilicon, the key ingredient for most competing technologies, dropped by about 89% due to Chinese advances in the Siemens process.[26] This precipitous drop in the cost of raw materials for Solyndra's competitors rendered CIGS technology incapable of competing, and other factors, including a contemporaneous drop in the price of natural gas, together with the faltering of the corresponding financial models, also contributed to Solyndra's demise,[27] despite quickly raising capital.[28] On August 31, 2011, Solyndra announced it was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, laying off 1,100 employees, and shutting down all operations and manufacturing.[29]

This time, they’re focusing their attention on Sunnova Energy, which recently won a $3 billion federal loan guarantee for a massive “virtual power plant” project. Republicans are raising the alarm over the company’s track record, accusing it of “troubling sales practices” while alleging potential favorable treatment from the Department of Energy.

The GOP probe of Sunnova follows months of pressure from the party and its allies. It includes charges that Sunnova unfairly benefited from close ties to Jigar Shah, the director of DOE’s Loan Programs Office, and that it had a long history of scamming its rooftop solar customers. Biden administration officials say they stand behind the award.

Whether that proves true remains to be seen. In 2009, Solyndra got a $535 million loan guarantee from DOE but went insolvent two years later. The scandal became shorthand for waste and mismanagement in former President Barack Obama’s green agenda.

Sunnova, a rooftop solar company founded in 2012 in Houston, was picked in April for a $3 billion loan guarantee for what it calls Project Hestia, a bid to link up to 115,000 homes’ rooftop solar and battery storage to improve grid resilience.

Shah, a clean energy entrepreneur and former podcast host, stands out from most bureaucrats. He’s known to make frank remarks in person and online. He’s acknowledged that there will likely be failures on some of the loans or guarantees that come out of his office.

Following the stock price drop, he defended the project, writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, “LPO firmly stands behind Project Hestia, which will expand solar access to up to 115k US homes. We held @SunnovaEnergy to the highest standards in our due diligence, which they’ve met with enthusiasm since day 1, while implementing new customer service programs.”

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