Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | AUGUST 11, 2025 13 cheaper and solar panels were cost- lier, he said. "That was the payback less than three or four years ago, and we were still helping a lot of homeowners," Schneider said. "We assume electric rates will continue to climb, so we are not worried about the future of residential or commercial solar." Currently, solar still makes up only a small proportion of Connecticut's electricity generation — 4% as of 2023, according to a U.S. Energy Informa- tion Administration report published last December. Natural gas fueled 60% of Connecti- cut's total electricity net genera- tion in 2023, followed by nuclear power (33%). Still, solar has been a growth industry in Connecticut and elsewhere. PosiGen, a New Orleans-based solar company with about 100 staff in Connecticut, expects a short-term burst of business as a result of the One Big Beautiful Bill. The company provides solar to low-income house- holds through long-term equipment leases rather than sales. Leasing companies, like PosiGen, qualify for the commercial clean energy tax credit, which has a longer runway under the Big Beautiful Bill. Commercial solar projects that start construction by July 4, 2026, can still receive the full 30% tax credit. They could also qualify for a four-year safe harbor, giving developers potentially until mid-2030 to finish construction. "One of the outcomes of this bill is you are going to see a shift toward the third party-owned model just because the tax credits are still going to be a factor," said Kyle Wallace, PosiGen's vice president of public policy and government affairs. Still, Wallace — who also chairs the residen- tial solar and storage division of the national Solar Energy Industries Association — is no fan of the recently passed federal law. PosiGen has grown quickly, from operations in seven states when Wallace was hired in late 2022, to 15 states today. The withdrawal of the federal tax subsidies has the 700-employee company rethinking growth plans, he said. "I don't think in Connecticut we expect an immediate hit," Wallace said. "We were on a very steep growth curve over the past two years. Because of the uncertainty, we've had to put things on pause and just maintain." More curveballs One big question on solar devel- opers' minds is how aggressively the Trump administration will pursue the rollback of tax credit incentives. Just days after signing the Big Beautiful Bill into law, President Trump issued an executive order taking further aim at the renewable energy industry. The July 7 order described wind and solar technology as "unreli- able," and called for the U.S. Treasury Secretary to "strictly" enforce the termination of clean energy produc- tion and investment tax credits as outlined in the Big Beautiful Bill Act. It also instructs the U.S. Treasury to issue "new and revised guidance" on what qualifies as a project that has started construction. Given past regulations, William Herchel, co-founder and CEO of West Hartford renewable energy company Verogy, initially expected the Big Beautiful Bill would require 5% of project dollars to be spent in order for it to qualify for tax credits by the July 4, 2026, deadline for commercial projects. Just to be safe, Herchel had planned to deploy 10% of project budgets before that deadline, but he worries the Trea- sury could release intentionally difficult language that scuttles his plans. "All of this was thrown up into the air, and of course the language in the executive order was pretty aggressive to say that it wanted to stop the devel- opment of solar and wind projects to the extent they could," Herchel said. A punitive interpretation from the Treasury could cut down commer- cial solar pipelines by 25% to 50%, Herchel estimated. "Because of the uncertainty, most are waiting to see the guidance come out of the Treasury before making meaningful actions, but as soon as those guidelines come out, I think there will be a rush to make sure they bring in those projects they can bring in, if they can be brought in," Herchel said. The Treasury is supposed to issue the guidance within 45 days from when Trump signed the executive order. Verogy employs 52 people and has built about 100 commercial and industrial-scale solar facilities across multiple states since it launched at the start of 2018. The company uses domestically produced solar panels and steel, which has bumped its tax credit to 40%. Verogy has hundreds of projects in planning or development and is ramping up hiring to finish as many as possible before the tax credit expires, Herchel said. Meantime, Verogy is exploring the possibility of expanding into other clean energy fields, including tech- nology that isn't being targeted by the Trump administration, like modular nuclear reactors or fuel cells. Verogy also anticipates ongoing demand for solar, especially in Connecticut. It's possible the federal administration's actions could push energy costs higher, making solar even more competitive, Herchel said. William Herchel, co-founder and CEO of West Hartford renewable energy company Verogy. 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West Hartford-based Verogy began construction in March on this 3-megawatt solar array in Glastonbury, with completion expected in September. Contributed Photo Kyle Wallace

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