SunVest Solar in Chicago's West Loop had a rocky 2025 but sees growth as energy demand increases

Last year was difficult for solar company SunVest Solar, as President Donald Trump’s administration pulled federal tax credits for several major renewable energy sectors.

“The policy environment is extremely volatile right now,” SunVest Solar CEO Bram Walters said.

But longer-term, Walters said the outlook for solar remains robust due to huge demand for energy, especially as data centers proliferate.

“The macros of the industry remain incredibly strong,” he said.

Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed last year, gutted federal support for renewable energy like solar and wind. For commercial solar projects to be eligible for a 30% federal tax credit, construction must start by July 4, or start operating by the end of 2027.

That meant SunVest had to scramble to begin projects. It bought solar panels and equipment for projects three to five years in advance.

“We had 90 days to do it,” Walters said. “That creates a huge working capital drain. We had to raise money for all this. It creates tremendous undue strain on the business.”

Other solar companies are also stressed. There were high-profile solar company bankruptcies last year, including North Carolina-based Pine Gate Renewables and Houston-based Sunnova, due to factors like rising interest rates, higher costs and unfavorable state and federal policies.

After the passage of Trump’s legislation, forecasts showed the U.S. is on track to lose up to 55 gigawatts of solar by 2030. That includes a 14% collapse in Illinois, the nation’s 10th largest solar market, according to a 2025 report from the Solar Energy Industries Association.

Walters said SunVest was able to raise money to fund its abrupt capital spending. Lenders and investors “see the long-term view and remain committed to the sector,” he said.

In spite of the turmoil last year, SunVest started 100 megawatts of projects in 2025, enough to power approximately 20,000 homes. It plans to increase construction starts by more than 50% this year.

In his first term, Trump placed tariffs on solar panels, which former President Joe Biden maintained. But Trump’s mercurial trade policies have created more stress for SunVest. Tariffs have hit not only solar panels but also steel, copper and other materials used for solar equipment.

“Significant tariffs remain in place, which drive up the cost of renewable energy in the U.S. above what it would be in other markets,” Walters said.

SunVest’s overall costs have increased 10%, he estimated. Tariffs on most imported panels are currently about 15%.

Because of Trump’s legislation, more than 830,000 clean energy jobs nationwide could be lost by 2030 as projects stall or collapse, said a report from business group E2 last year.

SunVest’s workforce shrank last year, as employees left the company and the industry. It currently has about 50 employees and needs to hire about a dozen more, Walters said. But it’s tough hiring mid-career workers because they are skittish about the industry’s uncertainty.

One new opportunity for growth are batteries, after Illinois last year passed the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act that creates incentives for electrical grid batteries and other renewable energy. The act was signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker on Jan. 8.

Batteries — energy storage for solar arrays — are “a very significant opportunity. We’ve started construction on multiple projects,” Walters said. Developing batteries will also help address lapses in solar energy when there’s no sunshine, he added.

SunVest was founded in 2009 and moved from Milwaukee to Chicago in 2022 because of Illinois’ ambitious targets for clean energy under the state’s Climate and Equitable Jobs Act.

Illinois remains SunVest’s largest market. “We would like to see more states like Illinois,” Walters said.

He's still optimistic about the outlook for SunVest and solar.

“Renewable energy — including solar and battery storage — remains the lowest cost source of new base load power that can be quickly and efficiently installed in order to respond to growing demand from data centers, which would otherwise drive up the cost of energy in the U.S.,” he said. “We need to continue supporting solar and storage installations to meet growing demand and keep the cost of power down for the average consumer.”

Walters added, “This industry has its ups and downs and is policy driven … Less policy would be better for everyone.”