T1 Energy: Insider Sells $3.3 Million as KORE Deal Fails to Halt 16% Slide

Einar Kilde isn’t the only one having second thoughts. The former T1 Energy manager has dumped shares worth roughly $3.3 million over the past week, just as the company’s stock staged a spectacular rally — and then reversed sharply. The solar and battery storage group saw its shares plunge nearly 16% on Friday to €8.50, wiping out much of a run that had lifted the stock to a 52-week high of €11.00 only days earlier.

Kilde filed a Form 144 on June 4 signalling his intent to sell around 26,000 shares worth approximately $297,000, following larger disposals in late May. Such filings are statements of intention, not executed trades, but they carry symbolic weight. By selling at the peak of an intra-month doubling, the former executive has injected a note of caution into a story that had been all about momentum.

That story revolves around the company’s $32 million acquisition of KORE Power, announced on June 3. The deal, which is part equity, part cash and part debt assumption, is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026 — subject to KORE shareholder approval, which a majority has already backed. T1 Energy plans to fold KORE’s NRI unit into its own operations as T1 NRI, gaining a team that has installed roughly 1,100 large-scale energy storage projects worldwide, from U.S. government agencies to industrial clients.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying T1 Energy?

Management is betting that KORE will contribute positive EBITDA in 2026 and between $15 million and $20 million in 2027, with an additional earn-out of up to $9.6 million in shares. Yet the market’s reaction suggests investors are less focused on the long-term promise and more on the immediate risks.

The biggest of those is the Texas solar cell factory. T1 Energy is building a 2.1-gigawatt Phase 1 facility and still needs around $225 million in financing after an April convertible note issue. Production is scheduled to start in the fourth quarter of 2026. The company’s balance sheet shows $123.7 million in cash as of March 31, but only $46.4 million of that is unrestricted. Operating cash flow was negative $73 million in the first quarter, while capital expenditures came in at $61 million. T1 Energy did book revenue of $177.6 million and adjusted EBITDA of $9.1 million, but a net loss of $21.4 million underscores how narrow the path to profitability remains.

Friday’s selloff was heavy: nearly 20 million shares changed hands, pushing the stock from Thursday’s close of €10.10 to an intraday low below €9.80 before settling at €8.50. The relative strength index of 58 suggests the stock is not yet oversold, but an annualised volatility of 159% leaves no doubt about the speculative nature of the play. For now, the expansion story has given way to a sobering arithmetic: can T1 Energy close the KORE deal on schedule in June, back up its EBITDA forecasts, and plug the $225 million funding gap without further diluting shareholders? The three questions hang over a stock that has tripled from its year low of €3.24 — and just lost nearly a quarter of its peak value in a single session.