The sun set on the federal government’s loan-guarantee program for renewable-energy development on Friday, with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) closing four deals – three for big solar-power plants and another for a 28-state rooftop-to-grid project – worth more than $4 billion. But while there were last-day winners, there were also losers, as four conditionally guaranteed projects that were on the DOE’s Section 1705 scoreboard Friday morning had disappeared by nightfall.

The two biggest of the four to fail: First Solar’s Topaz solar plant in California, and SolarCity’s SolarStrong project to put solar system on the roofs of military housing around the nation. Neither’s fate was a surprise; First Solar revealed on Sept. 22 that it had been told Topaz wasn’t going to clear, and SolarCity made a similar revelation a day later. Keep reading →