Trends

New collaborations advance large-scale solar development 2024 Trends in Solar

Sara Carbone — Fri, 12 Jan 2024 13:00:26 +0000

The complexities of deploying utility-scale solar are not new to developers and other industry stakeholders. These can range from issues around environmental impacts and equity to challenges regarding land-use, permitting and policy. Given the importance of large-scale solar on our country’s clean energy transition, many are seeking new collaborators to address these difficulties and facilitate…

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States boost solar installation on former landfills 2024 Trends in Solar

Billy Ludt — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 13:01:49 +0000

A handful of states, mostly based in the Northeast, have incentivized, or at the very least encouraged, solar development on decommissioned landfills within their borders. These plots of land are often untouched and otherwise unfit for commercial development that requires even minor civil work because their soil is capped and should not be penetrated. “There…

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Bidirectional EV chargers to finally materialize in 2024 2024 Trends in Solar

Kelly Pickerel — Thu, 11 Jan 2024 13:00:26 +0000

As expected, the bidirectional EV charger market is taking off. The device that can both charge and export an EV battery’s power into a home or onto the grid has been excitedly touted for the last few years without any actual products available on the market. That’s starting to change, as Delta Electronics recently joined…

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Federal and local support grows for solar in LMI communities 2024 Trends in Solar

Kelly Pickerel — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 13:00:12 +0000

Solar for low- and moderate-income (LMI) communities is having its day in the sun. Demand for more equitable solar siting has never been higher, and federal and local incentives are supporting the action. This past year was a major tipping point for LMI support in solar, said Vincent Potter, policy analyst at the NC Clean…

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Microinverter manufacturers are adding string inverters to their lineup 2024 Trends in Solar

Sara Carbone — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 12:59:15 +0000

Module-level rapid shutdown requirements that originated in the 2017 National Electrical Code gave microinverter manufacturers a boost as a simple way for rooftop systems to comply. But as the code and consumer needs have changed, string inverters are having a resurgence. Over the past year, some microinverter makers have decided to go bigger and add…

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High interest rates and other issues threaten the residential solar market in 2024 2024 Trends in Solar

Sara Carbone — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 13:00:47 +0000

Residential solar took some serious hits in 2023. There were endemic supply chain disruptions and savings for rooftop solar became less clear when utility electricity prices stabilized in 2022. Solar stocks plummeted, and the passage of NEM 3.0 in California significantly curtailed the largest rooftop solar economy in the country. In this environment, some residential…

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Butyl and mastic flashing sweeps residential solar mounting market 2024 Trends in Solar

Billy Ludt — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 12:59:46 +0000

There’s been a shift recently in the residential mounting sector, with manufacturers prioritizing smaller profile mounts that install over shingles rather than the traditional metal flashing sheets installed under roof coverings. These top-mounted attachments tend to reduce the materials carried to a roof and the number of steps in a solar installation. Previously, there were…

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Bankruptcies and closures rock residential solar in last year 2024 Trends in Solar

Billy Ludt — Mon, 08 Jan 2024 13:01:13 +0000

In an era of unprecedented federal support for U.S. solar installation, the residential PV market has encountered economic hardships and policy roadblocks resulting in a rash of closures among contractors. Commercial solar warranter SolarInsure reported that there were more than 100 bankruptcies and closures in 2023 alone, including several large installers that were operating nationally…

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Solar panel pricing in the United States in flux 2024 Trends in Solar

Kelly Pickerel — Mon, 08 Jan 2024 13:00:31 +0000

Editor’s Note: This story was updated after initial publishing to reflect quickly changing solar panel pricing conditions. A significant amount of solar panels were imported in 2023 (44.5 GW through October, with only 33 GW expected to be installed in the calendar year), which is contributing to a large inventory of modules in U.S. warehouses…

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Solar adoption is slowly shifting to less-affluent communities 2023 Trends in Solar

Kelsey Misbrener — Thu, 12 Jan 2023 13:00:37 +0000

Clean, local energy in the form of rooftop solar power is a powerful tool for fighting environmental injustice, but accessibility for the low-to-moderate income (LMI) community has been a stubborn barrier. Owning a home to put solar on in the first place is a challenge, and being able to afford a system is more complicated…

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Entrepreneurs finally bring real sustainability to solar 2023 Trends in Solar

Kelly Pickerel — Thu, 12 Jan 2023 12:59:31 +0000

Back in 2018, one industry source said it was premature to focus on solar panel recycling in the United States, but almost five years later, significant steps are being taken to establish protocols to bring more sustainability to the solar industry. From solar panel recycling to waste cleanup on project sites to better packaging for…

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States finally recognize unique capabilities of solar + storage systems in interconnection planning 2023 Trends in Solar

Kelsey Misbrener — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 13:00:57 +0000

The solar + storage industry evolves rapidly as new technologies and capabilities come to market. Meanwhile, the bureaucratic institutions that regulate how these systems interconnect to the grid usually lag far behind. But some standout states are finally making significant progress on catching up. The Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) has led the charge on…

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Renewables overtake coal and nuclear electrical output in 2022 2023 Trends in Solar

Billy Ludt — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 12:59:44 +0000

Renewable energy sources like solar and wind are consistently outpacing the new deployment of fossil fuels and nuclear energy in the United States. In April 2022, wind and solar combined produced 17.96% more electricity than all of the country’s nuclear power plants, according to an analysis of EIA data by the SUN DAY Campaign. This…

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Downstream players adapt to irregular panel sizes entering all markets 2023 Trends in Solar

Kelly Pickerel — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 13:00:22 +0000

It’s not often that one looks at the early years of the solar industry with nostalgia, but it was at least a time that had some consistency in solar panel sizes. It was generally understood that 60-cell solar panels were made for the residential market, while 72-cell panels were used in commercial and utility-scale applications.…

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Solar software developers integrate with financiers 2023 Trends in Solar

Billy Ludt — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 12:59:45 +0000

Solar design and sales software providers are increasingly integrating with financing services to streamline the PV project commissioning process. Last year alone, Energy Toolbase added commercial solar financing service Luminia to its developer platform; Aurora Solar integrated with Dividend, Sungage Financial, Mosaic and GoodLeap for residential solar financing; and even solar panel manufacturer Solaria merged…

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