Why Solar Supply Chains Are Shaky Right Now — And How Viva Energy Keeps Your Project Moving
Viva Energy partners Geoff Kramer and Henry Macias at RE+ 2025 in Las Vegas, meeting with suppliers to secure solar panels and batteries for California homeowners.
Here’s the reality: it’s not just Viva Energy feeling the squeeze. The entire solar industry is navigating some rough supply chain waters.
At the center of the storm is polysilicon — the fine silicon crystals used to make solar panels. Earlier this year, the U.S. lost its only polysilicon plant, leaving China with about 95% control of global supply. That’s a choke point you can’t fix overnight; building new plants takes years, not weeks.
Add in trade tensions and tariffs, and things get messier. Anti-dumping duties on imports from Southeast Asia are disrupting module availability and driving up costs. Federal incentives, meanwhile, are on shaky ground—lawmakers keep floating rollbacks that spook investors and slow down expansion.
For homeowners, this all sounds abstract until you feel it in real life:
Delays that stretch projects out for months.
Equipment costs rising after you’ve already signed a contract.
Installers overpromising and then leaving you in limbo because they can’t actually get panels or batteries.
Here’s the good news: domestic solar manufacturing is growing fast. The U.S. now has around 58 GW of capacity—enough to cover most national demand this year. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act and the Section 45X tax credits, factories are being built and expanded. Not all projects succeed, but momentum is there.
And here’s where Viva Energy makes the difference. While the big-picture challenges are real, we don’t just shrug and hope for the best. Right now, partners Geoff Kramer and Henry Macias are in Las Vegas at RE+—the largest solar industry conference in the country—meeting face-to-face with suppliers. They’re locking in the parts we need for the rest of the year so our Central Valley and Central Coast customers don’t get stuck waiting.
Henry Macias, Viva Energy’s head of sales and partner, puts it simply:
“The goal is simple: keep projects moving. By securing equipment now, we’re making sure families in the Central Valley and Central Coast can count on their installs being completed on time.”
We can’t control global markets. But we can control how we prepare. That’s what gives Viva Energy customers peace of mind: predictable service, secured equipment, and the confidence that your project will move forward without excuses.
When you choose an installer, you’re not just picking a crew—you’re choosing whether your family gets stranded by global shocks or protected by smart planning. At Viva Energy, we choose protection.