> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.suno.finance/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.suno.finance/for-depositors/staking.md).

# Staking with c-uWatt

How c-uWatt earns rewards, what changes in your wallet, and how to unstake.

c-uWatt is the share you receive when you deposit uWatt in the staking vault. It turns a uWatt holding into a position that accumulates funded rewards from the protocol.

You keep the same number of shares while the amount of uWatt represented by each share increases as rewards are released. There is no separate reward-claim transaction.

## Understanding the exchange rate

Suppose you stake **1,000 uWatt** when one c-uWatt represents one uWatt. Funded rewards later raise the rate to **1.05 uWatt per share**:

```mermaid
---
config:
    theme: base
    fontFamily: "Urbanist, sans-serif"
    themeCSS: |
        & { overflow: visible; }
        @font-face {
            font-family: Urbanist;
            font-style: normal;
            font-weight: 400;
            font-display: swap;
            src: url("https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/urbanist/v18/L0xjDF02iFML4hGCyOCpRdycFsGxSrqDyx4fFg.ttf") format("truetype");
        }
        .left-axis .label text:nth-child(even),
        .left-axis .ticks path:nth-child(even) { display: none; }
        .line-plot-0 path { stroke-width: 3; stroke-linecap: round; }
        @media (max-width: 600px) {
            .left-axis .label text, .bottom-axis .label text { font-size: 32px; }
            .left-axis .title text, .bottom-axis .title text { font-size: 30px; }
            .line-plot-0 path { stroke-width: 4; }
        }
    xyChart:
        width: 900
        height: 420
        xAxis:
            labelFontSize: 20
            titleFontSize: 20
            labelPadding: 12
            titlePadding: 18
            tickLength: 4
            tickWidth: 1
            axisLineWidth: 1
        yAxis:
            labelFontSize: 20
            titleFontSize: 20
            labelPadding: 12
            titlePadding: 18
            tickLength: 4
            tickWidth: 1
            axisLineWidth: 1
    themeVariables:
        fontFamily: "Urbanist, sans-serif"
        background: transparent
        xyChart:
            backgroundColor: transparent
            xAxisLabelColor: currentColor
            xAxisTitleColor: currentColor
            xAxisTickColor: "#94a3a0"
            xAxisLineColor: "#94a3a0"
            yAxisLabelColor: currentColor
            yAxisTitleColor: currentColor
            yAxisTickColor: "#94a3a0"
            yAxisLineColor: "#94a3a0"
            plotColorPalette: "#0d9488"
---
xychart-beta
    x-axis "Rewards released (uWatt)" [0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50]
    y-axis "uWatt per c-uWatt" 1 --> 1.05
    line [1, 1.01, 1.02, 1.03, 1.04, 1.05]
```

Your **1,000 c-uWatt** now represent **1,050 uWatt**: the share count is unchanged, but each share represents more uWatt. A new deposit of 1,000 uWatt at this rate receives approximately **952.38 c-uWatt**, still representing the full 1,000 uWatt deposited.

The chart follows your 1,000-share position. These figures illustrate the mechanism, not a promised return or a particular earning period.

## Where rewards come from

Operating solar projects sell electricity and collect payments. When an energy payment reaches Reserve custody through the distribution process, the protocol calculates how much new uWatt to issue to the vault. The payment itself stays in custody as backing.

Some payment value is retained without matching issuance. This strengthens the shared buffer. The split responds to the collateral ratio: weaker backing directs more toward protection; stronger backing allows a larger reward allocation. The target is 1.15, but retention is not a fixed percentage of every payment.

Idle liquidity also earns a base yield in instruments selected for low risk and high liquidity. That income first adds to Reserve backing; making it available as a staking reward requires a separate treasury realization and distribution step. An increase in a project's estimated value alone does not create a staking payment.

## Why the return varies

Your return depends on collected revenue, the share retained for backing, the amount staked, and when rewards are released. More or less electricity income, changes in backing, or a different number of stakers can change the result.

Rewards are released gradually over a configured period, a process called vesting. You earn a proportional share of the rewards released while your uWatt is staked. A newly received payment is therefore not added to the share price all at once.

## Unstaking and withdrawing

There is no fixed staking term. Unstaking exchanges c-uWatt for uWatt at the vault's current rate, subject to token controls. Redeeming that uWatt for USDC is a separate transaction through the [uWatt desk](/for-depositors/uwatt.md), with its liquidity, fee, and daily-capacity conditions.

c-uWatt is not a token fixed at $1. Its value depends on both the uWatt represented by each share and the value of uWatt itself. Accumulating more uWatt per share does not remove the [Reserve's investment risks](/overview/backing-and-liquidity.md).


---

# Agent Instructions
This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com.

## Querying This Documentation
If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.suno.finance/for-depositors/staking.md?ask=<question>&goal=<endgoal>
```

`ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
`goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal.

The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.
