SAN FRANCISCO, July 15 – (Reuters) – Chinese panel maker
Suntech Power Holdings Co Ltd (STP.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is getting into the solar
lease business to compete with venture-backed start-ups such as
SolarCity and SunRun, the vice president of project finance for
its U.S. business said on Wednesday.

The program, already launched in California, will expand to
up to six more states by the end of 2011, Scott Son said in an
interview, adding the initiative will increase panel sales by
helping the installers it partners with stay competitive.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A U.S. judge’s gay relationship is no basis for tossing out his decision overturning California’s same-sex marriage ban, another federal judge ruled on Tuesday.

Doing otherwise would send a message that minority judges could not rule in civil rights cases, ruled Chief U.S. District Judge James Ware, who upheld the decision to overturn California’s gay marriage ban.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Solar panel maker Suntech Power Holdings Co Ltd (STP.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plans to launch four or five financing programs for the U.S. market in the next six to nine months, the head of its North American business said on Tuesday.

The initiatives will cover various parts of the industry, including residential solar, Suntech America President Steven Chan said at the Reuters Global Energy and Climate Summit in San Francisco.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A judge’s same-sex relationship is no reason to toss out his ruling backing same-sex matrimony, another federal judge ruled on Tuesday.

The decision by Chief U.S. District Judge James Ware backed the prior ruling overturning California’s gay marriage ban.

SAN FRANCISCO, June 14 (Reuters) – A U.S. judge’s same-sex
relationship is no reason to toss out his ruling backing
same-sex matrimony, another federal judge ruled on Tuesday.

The decision by Chief U.S. District Judge James Ware backed
the prior ruling overturning California’s gay marriage ban.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – California’s clean air regulators, fighting to create a market for greenhouse gases and spur wind farms and solar projects around the state, are shifting their focus to an old friend and enemy — cars.

State law requires California cut emissions of greenhouse gases to 1990 levels by 2020.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A new, court-ordered analysis of California alternatives for regulating greenhouse gases shows that a carbon cap-and-trade market is still the “correct” choice, the state’s top climate regulator said on Monday.

“The analysis that led us to conclude that a cap-and-trade program was the correct alternative choice is fundamentally sound, and I think that this document lays that out quite clearly,” Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols told the Reuters Global Energy and Climate Summit.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A new, court-ordered analysis of California alternatives for regulating greenhouse gases shows that a carbon cap-and-trade market is still the “correct” choice, the state’s top climate regulator said on Monday.

“The analysis that led us to conclude that a cap-and-trade program was the correct alternative choice is fundamentally sound, and I think that this document lays that out quite clearly,” Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols told the Reuters Global Energy and Climate Summit.

NEW YORK/SAN FRANCISCO, May 27 (Reuters) – Shares of
biofuel maker Solazyme Inc (SZYM.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 15 percent in their
stock market debut on Friday after the company’s IPO raised
more than expected.

South San Francisco-based Solazyme uses algae to make oil
and plans to sell fuel oil, dietary supplements and skin care
products. It is the latest of a handful of companies that make
fossil fuel alternatives and have sought money successfully
from the U.S. capital markets.

SAN FRANCISCO, May 19 (Reuters) – Perennial trend-setter
California still represents potential aspects of the future of
the United States, ranging from wealth and opportunity in
Silicon Valley to abject poverty in the agricultural Central
Valley.

The Golden State has always seen itself as the best, and it
still is for some, but a new study of federal census and state
data covering longevity, education and income shows the state
is also home to arguably the worst-off parts of the nation.