Culper Research said it has little faith in T1’s management, nor the company’s disclosures and financial reporting and said that shares are headed far lower.
- Culper believes that T1 is ineligible for 45X tax credits, and forthcoming treasury guidance will be a “death blow” to the company.
- Culper alleged that T1 has rebranded itself as an all American solar module manufacturer while remaining operationally and economically subject to China-based Trina Solar, a foreign entity of concern.
- Culper also noted discrepancies between T1’s reported sales to Trina and Trina’s reported purchases from T1.
T1 Energy shares slumped on Wednesday after activist short seller Culper Research published a critical short report on the company and said it has taken a short position against the firm.
“We are short T1 Energy, a failed EV battery SPAC that has rebranded itself an all American solar module manufacturer while remaining operationally and economically subject to China-based Trina Solar, a foreign entity of concern (FEOC),” Culper said in its report.
“We have little faith in management, nor the Company’s disclosures and financial reporting. T1 is already subject to scrutiny by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Department of Justice, and U.S. Customs, and we believe faces massive liabilities stemming from these probes, and shares are headed far lower” it said.
Culper’s Allegations
As per Culper’s report, T1 was sued by RWE Clean Energy after RWE terminated its offtake agreement on December 19, 2025. The lawsuit alleged that T1 misrepresented its customer base, failed to provide module audits, failed to deliver compliant modules, and breached confidentiality provisions. Culper also claimed that T1 has not yet disclosed either the termination or the lawsuit.
Culper believes that T1 is ineligible for 45X tax credits (Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit) , and forthcoming treasury guidance explicitly designed to “prevent entities from evading, circumventing, or abusing” existing FEOC provisions will be a “death blow.” Experts also warn that certain Chinese groups may be entirely blacklisted, which could risk T1’s eligibility altogether.
Financial Irregularities
Culper also raised irregularities in T1’s financial reporting. It noted discrepancies between T1’s reported sales to Trina and Trina’s reported purchases from T1. As per the report, T1 has accrued $59.7 million due to Trina, which is equivalent to 83% of its total consolidated gross profit for the nine months ended Sept. 2025.
Culper Research views T1 as wholly uninvestible. “Absent 45X credits, T1’s business model fails. The Wilmer facility has minimal standalone value without Trina’s materials, operations, personnel, customers, and financial support, and as Treasury enforcement tightens, we believe T1 threatens permanent ineligibility,” it said.
How Did Stocktwits Users React?
Retail sentiment around TE trended in ‘extremely bullish’ territory amid ‘high’ message volume.
Shares of the company have risen nearly 11% year-to-date.