Solyndra, the failed solar panel maker, received court approval on Monday for its plan to repay creditors after a bankruptcy judge overruled objections by the US government, writes Reuters. The government, which said it may appeal the ruling, had said the plan improperly provided $341 million in tax breaks to venture capital investors Argonaut Private Equity and Madrone Capital Partners.

(Reuters) – Congress should seek testimony from two venture capital firms that poured money into Solyndra, the bankrupt solar panel maker being probed by the FBI and other agencies, top House Democrats said on Monday. Republican lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce are investigating a $533 million federal loan guarantee given to Solyndra, and [...]

Enphase Energy joined the list of top cleantech companies testing the IPO waters this year by filing for an IPO on Wednesday The company said in a S-1 registration statement submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission that it plans to raise $100 million. A successful offering will benefit six venture investors with substantial stakes [...]

TA Associates of Boston and Madrone Capital Partners of Menlo Park, Calif., made an investment in MicroSeismic Inc., Houston, Texas-based provider of microseismic data acquisition, analysis and interpretation to the oil and gas industry. The firms said the investment was substantial, but specific terms were not disclosed. Goodwin Procter LLP serves as legal counsel to both TA Associates and Madrone Capital.

The company designs and manufactures photovoltaic panels and has raised more venture capital this year — $286 million in the third quarter, over $512 million total, according to Thomson Reuters — than any one else.

Equally impressive has been its ability to get money from the government. In March, Solyndra got a $535 million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy to build a second solar panel fabrication plant in California — the first clean tech company to get such a loan. It has applied for a second loan from the DOE of $469 million, according to the S-1, and estimates that the next phase of the fab will cost $642 million.

(Reuters) – Hyatt Hotels Corp (H.N) set the size and price range of its planned initial public offering, suggesting the launch of the $931 million deal is imminent despite signs of feuding within the controlling Pritzker family. (peHUB note: Goldman Sachs and Madrone Capital Partners maintain stakes in the company.) The Chicago-based hotel chain, which [...]