![A man speaks to a crowd from a stage. Behind the man is a wall of greenery, the Microsoft logo, and a screen that says “the world’s climate problem.”](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MeB6Onz9yfcQfbvdrDGaWL4g_bA=/0x0:3200x2133/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71909245/1194043966.0.jpg)
Microsoft just forged a strategic alliance with a major solar panel manufacturer to try to make good on its clean energy goals. The deal comes as supply chain woes and allegations of labor abuse are making it increasingly difficult to deploy solar energy across the US.
The plan is for solar energy heavyweight Qcells to provide more than 2.5 gigawatts of solar panels and related services to developers working with Microsoft. That’s enough to power some 400,000 homes, according to Microsoft, which hailed the collaboration as a “first-of-its-kind.”
The company has a goal of cutting its greenhouse gas emissions by “more…