Solar stocks tank on fears Trump will hamper clean energy progress, repeal IRA

Solar stocks sold off Wednesday after Donald Trump secured a second trip to the White House and Republicans won control of the Senate.

Solar stocks are falling on fears that Trump’s second term would spell trouble for the Inflation Reduction Act, which has fueled a clean energy boom in the U.S. through tax credits to expand solar energy.

NBC News projected that Trump had gained a sizable Electoral College lead to win the presidency early Wednesday morning.

The benchmark Invesco Solar ETF closed nearly 11% lower, while the iShares Global Clean Energy ETF shed more than 7%.

Solar panel manufacturer First Solar fell about about 10%. Residential solar stocks Sunrun and Sunnova plummeted more than 29% and more than 51%, respectively.

Inverter manufacturers Enphase and SolarEdge tumbled about nearly 17% and about 22%, respectively. Sun tracker manufacturers Nextracker and Array lost about 6% and nearly 22%, respectively.

Trump’s campaign platform calls for the termination of the IRA, which he refers to as the “Socialist Green New Deal.” The IRA is one of President Joe Biden’s signature achievements. The law passed on party-line vote in 2022 without any Republican support.

The future of the IRA, however, will depend not only on whether Trump wins the White House, but whether Republicans also secure unified control of Congress. It remains unclear whether the GOP will secure a majority in the House of Representatives.