Elon Musk’s visit to India may have been more about Tesla than any mission for the US government, if recent job listings at Tesla are to be believed. Plus, we’ve got news that construction on the first Tesla Semi truck stop is underway in California – and only six years behind schedule! All this and more on today’s (also late) episode of Quick Charge!

We’ve also got news Hyundai and Kia have plans to get back their $7,500 Federal tax credits, are set to launch a new, 509 hp version of the hot-selling EV9 GT, and there’s a new battery factory coming to Louisiana. Enjoy!

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Tesla and Honda are set to purchase all the power from Delilah I, a new 300 MW solar farm in Texas.

The Delilah I Solar Energy Center in Lamar and Red River counties, approximately 140 miles northeast of Dallas, is now online. Honda is securing 200 MW, and Tesla is taking 100 MW through virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs). The energy is being fed into the local grid. The project was developed by Invenergy and is majority-owned by Milwaukee-based WEC Energy Group, which acquired it in April.

Delilah I is part of the five-phase Samson & Delilah solar portfolio, one of the largest solar facilities under construction in the US. WEC Energy Group already owns a majority interest in Samson I — a separate phase of the Samson & Delilah project.

Invenergy highlighted the role of landowners and the local community in bringing the project to life, creating jobs, and adding more US-made clean energy to the grid.

“In North America, Honda is nearing its goal of sourcing 100% of its electricity from carbon-free sources,” said Daniel Bremer, carbon neutrality manager at American Honda Motor Co. “As we accelerate toward achieving carbon neutrality for all products and corporate activities, our 200 MW VPPA with Delilah I Solar Energy Center will significantly cut CO2 emissions from Honda US auto manufacturing operations while adding more clean energy into the local grid.” 

Read more: A vast 600 MW Texas solar farm just hit a major milestone

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Danish renewables developer European Energy (EE) has completed the sale of its largest solar farm in the US to date.

Copenhagen-based European Energy said it sold the solar farm to an undisclosed buyer so that it can develop, deliver, and recycle capital into new US renewable energy projects. EE develops solar, onshore and offshore wind, power-to-X, and battery storage projects. It arrived in the US in 2021 and has an office in Austin.

Lorena Ciciriello, chief executive of EE North America, said, “Our goal in the US is to create a broad portfolio of renewable energy solutions, and this sale is an important step in realizing our strategy.”

It’s the Danish developer’s “second major divestment” in the US since European Energy entered the solar market in 2021, bringing the total capacity divested to 800 MW. The company sold its first US solar farm, Yellow Viking in Texas, in 2023.

When fully operational, the still unnamed solar farm – EE doesn’t say where in the US it’s located, either – is expected to produce around 1,389 GWh of electricity annually, equivalent to the annual consumption of 128,000 US households.

“We remain committed to developing renewable energy projects in the USA that drive local growth and create jobs,” said Thorvald Spanggaard, EVP and head of project development at European Energy.

Electrek’s Take

This announcement, which is light on details, piqued my interest. It’s a large solar farm sold by a large European-HQ’ed global company that says it’s committed to developing more renewables in the US, which is currently being run by a government that doesn’t consider solar or wind to be defined as energy. What’s the incentive for EE to do that? It sure isn’t federal tax incentives.

What’s coming down the pipeline for renewable projects in the US? Everyone is speculating, but no one knows – not even Republicans, despite the risks of renewable project collapses being highest in their own states. I will make an educated guess and say that EE will sit on its sale proceeds and wait for clarity, which they may never get. That’s because the Trump administration memos and executive orders are deliberately designed to be vague. Chaos is a form of control.

Read more: Republican districts lose billions as clean energy cancellations surge

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