UPDATE: Renova Energy employees report layoffs after acquisition announcement
Athena Jreij
UPDATE 1/24
PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – News Channel 3 has received several reports that between 20-30 employees have been given layoff notices at Renova Energy.
It comes after News Channel 3 confirmed exclusively, the company will be acquired by investor-backed Mycrogrid.
Renova Energy CEO Vincent Battaglia said the acquisition will restructure the departments, and the company won’t know if layoffs are final until after the launch of Mycrogrid.
News Channel 3’s Athena Jreij spoke with one man, verified by multiple sources to have worked at Renova, who claims he was laid off Friday with little notice.
The man asked to share his story under condition of anonymity, out of fear of retaliation.
He claims this is his second time being laid off at the company following a mass furlough in 2024.
Now, he worries how he’ll pay his bills and make ends meet.
“It’s just tough, you know, I mean, especially for people that maybe have bigger things going on for themselves. So we don’t know. You know, certainly for me it’s pretty tough with bills and family,” he said.
Stick with News Channel 3 as we continue to follow this story through the relaunch of Mycrogrid.
Original Story 1/23
PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) – Renova Energy is being acquired by an investor-backed company, Mycrogrid, according to owner Vincent Battaglia.
News Channel 3 reached out to Battaglia today after questions from viewers, and received this statement:
“Renova Energy is not closing its doors and we appreciate the public’s concern. We are currently in a planned transition as part of a restructuring for acquisition of our 20 year company by an investor-backed company set to launch this spring.
Existing Renova customers will continue to receive service without interruption while backend operations are finalized. During this transition, new sales and installations will temporarily cease. We look forward to reopening in April as Mycrogrid®, a stronger company with expanded solar + energy storage, service and roofing capabilities!”
Battaglia clarified the transition will restructure the company and it’s employees, and that they expect to fill more roles with the help of Mycrogrid come April.
News Channel 3 dug deeper into the acquisition company, Mycrogrid, and found 2024 Secretary of State documents listing Battaglia as CEO of Mycrogrid.
After reaching out to Battaglia for clarification on what this means for the acquisition, he said, “Mycrogrid® was founded more than a decade ago with a clear, long-term mandate: to assemble the right capital, partners, and technical foundation for the next generation of solar + battery infrastructure. It’s time and that groundwork is now complete, and the market conditions, technology maturity, and investor alignment make this the right moment to launch,” Battaglia said via text.
The change comes after Renova’s pause in California and Arizona business operations in July of 2024, when the company furloughed more than 300 employees. After the pause, the company began rehiring staff in August of that year with continued efforts to find a new business partner.
This is a developing story, stick with News Channel 3 for the latest.