On May 28, according to foreign media reports, President Trump cancelled a $2.92 billion (about 20.97 billion yuan) government-guaranteed loan from Sunnova, an American residential solar giant.
It is understood that the loan was guaranteed by former President Biden in April 2023, mainly for low-income families, to support the financing of about 100000 rooftop solar installations. But since then, residential solar has struggled as rising interest rates have pushed up financing costs.
For Sunnova, which is in the process of debt restructuring, Trump's cancellation of government guarantees at this time is undoubtedly a fatal blow. In fact, as early as March 4, 2025, Sunnova warned that there was significant uncertainty about whether it could continue to operate because of insufficient cash flow.
On May 20, it was announced that the company was preparing to file for bankruptcy protection, but no final decision had been made. If the news is true, Sunnova will become another bankrupt American photovoltaic giant.
According to the financial data, Sunnova's operating income in 2024 was $839 million, up 16.55% year-on-year, but its net loss was as high as $368 million, with a basic loss of $2.96 per share. It is worth noting that the company has been losing money for the past five years, with a cumulative loss of more than $1.3 billion.
At present, there are many uncertainties in the solar industry in the United States. As the United States begins to impose new tariffs on solar manufacturers and their trading partners in 2025, the price of solar installations in the United States may rise further, which will undoubtedly make Sunnova's future situation worse!
In the face of difficulties, Sunnova is also actively saving itself. In order to alleviate the tight cash flow, the company has signed a three-year loan agreement with a number of lenders amounting to $185 million. For this reason, the company has to pay 15% interest annually, about $27.75 million.
At the same time, in order to reduce costs and simplify operations, Sunnova launched a major personnel restructuring plan, which will lay off about 300 people, accounting for 15% of the company's total workforce, and is expected to save about $35 million in cash annually.
In addition, Sunnova, a US residential solar company, has sold $371 million of bonds backed by "Hestia Program" loan guarantees, according to sources, but these bonds are not included in the debt that the company seeks to restructure.
浙公网安备33010802003254号