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Solar Investors Shrug Off Clean-Power Plan, Eying Tax Credits

Solar Shares Climb Despite Risk to Biden’s Clean-Power Program

Solar investors are shrugging off concerns that a key clean-energy provision may be stripped from the Democrats’ spending package, signaling they’re more focused on other proposals more likely to remain in the legislation. 

While the program is central to President Joe Biden’s climate plans, investors are keying in on other parts of the bill that would extend wind and solar tax credits, promote energy storage and more, according to Jeff Osborne, an analyst at Cowen & Co.

JinkoSolar Holding Co., one of the world’s biggest panel makers, gained as much as 4.6%, Canadian Solar Inc. climbed as much as 1.7%, and the Invesco Solar ETF was up as much as 1.3%, along with the overall market. 

The gains come after Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia told the White House and congressional leaders that he will not support the Clean Electricity Performance Program, which would encourage utilities to shift to clean energy sources like solar. Yet that “doesn’t appear to change any of the other initiatives at play” in the broader bill, Osborne said.

The negotiations over the program come two weeks before Biden is expected to attend a key United Nations climate summit in Glasgow. 

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.