The International Energy Agency (IEA) Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) has published a wide-reaching snapshot of the global PV market, covering installations, manufacturing, policy trends, and grid integration. From pv magazine Global Global PV capacity grew to 1.6 TW in 2023, up from 1.2 TW in 2022, according to the IEA-PVPS Snapshot of Global PV Markets 2024. The analysts said that up to 446 GW of new PV systems were commissioned last year, largely driven by rapid growth in China, alongside an estimated 150 GW of modules in inventories throughout the world. “After severa ..read more

Ohm Analytics reported that the 2.3 GW of distributed generation, which includes rooftop solar, deployed in Q4 2023 marked the end of a long period of growth. Roth MKM warns that if a turnaround does not occur soon, residential solar could decline by 20% to 30% in 2024. The distributed solar industry has experienced significant growth in recent years, with Ohm Analytics showing a more than a doubling of quarterly capacity since 2020. This growth was built atop residential solar, which itself had more than doubled its deployed capacity. However, 2023 witnessed a slowdown in distributed generati ..read more

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) released an overview of the top states for solar installation last year. In 2023, every segment of solar in the United States saw year-over-year growth in installations. Cumulative solar capacity stood at 177 GW by the end of the year, and utility-scale solar alone added 22.5 GW, a record year. Solar has been on an upswing across the nation, with more than half the states with 1 GW of total installed solar capacity. The industry has been lifted in part by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, a largest-ever spending package for climate and energy ..read more

The Massachusetts STAR program announced its fourth phase of program participants. The Massachusetts Solar Technical Assistance Retrofit (STAR) program provides technical and financial assistance for affordable housing organizations to adopt solar. Researching the complex financial and technical aspects of solar projects for numerous multi-unit buildings can be a heavy lift for an already stretched housing agency staff. The program seeks to address this issue by acting as a guiding force through the decision-making process. The program, administered by Boston branch of the Local Initiatives Su ..read more

The 18th edition of the EnergySage Marketplace Report finds the residential solar segment in the U.S. is rocked by persistent inflation, the California NEM 3.0 and rising loan fees. Yet prices have fallen and consumer interest in storage is strong. The 18th edition of the EnergySage Intel: Solar & Storage Marketplace Report looks at pricing trends, equipment preferences, financing terms, consumer interest and more. EnergySage, an online comparison-shopping marketplace for solar, provides solar quotes from local, vetted solar companies in 41 states and Washington DC. The marketplace report ..read more

BloombergNEF says in a new report that developers deployed 444 GW of new PV capacity throughout the world in 2023. It says new installations could reach 574 GW this year, 627 GW in 2025, and 880 GW in 2030. From pv magazine Global The world could install up to 574 GW of new PV capacity this year, according to a new global PV outlook report from BloombergNEF. It said that new solar installations hit 444 GW in 2023, significantly surpassing its previous forecast of around 413 GW. The research firm said it also expects new global PV installations to reach 627 GW in 2025 and 672 GW in 20 ..read more

Today, it only represents about 1.5% of the electricity used. A report from Environment America shows how installed rooftop solar increased 1000% in the past decade, and how it has a long runway of growth ahead. Among the leading sources of electricity, solar has the unique advantage of being able to be installed in a distributed fashion, integrating it with the built environment, preserving land and reducing transmission infrastructure needs. Rooftop residential solar can offer homeowners bill savings or price predictability in the long run, and when paired with a battery, offers a value-add ..read more

Also on the rise: 26% of battery storage systems have fire detection and suppression issues. Solar glass manufacturing comes to Georgia. And more. Puerto Rico program to bring low-cost solar and batteries to 30,000 households Applications open February 22 for the DOE’s Solar Access Program for eligible single family homeowners in Puerto Rico. Survey finds 26% of battery storage systems have fire detection and suppression issues The Clean Energy Associate’s survey also found 18% of the energy storage systems had issues with the thermal management system. Reducing cost of residential solar finan ..read more

Solrite Energy says its new power purchase agreement has more agreeable finance terms due to the ability of distributed solar-plus-storage to make money as part of a virtual power plant. Solrite Energy is rolling out a new finance package for residential solar-plus-storage, claiming its enhanced terms are directly tied to the benefits derived from virtual power plants (VPP). Using the advanced technical capabilities of sonnen’s energy storage hardware, their power purchase agreement (PPA) aims to tap into the growing potential of VPPs, offering homeowners in selected regions a way to participa ..read more

In partnership with utility Pacific Gas and Electric, the residential solar installer enrolled distributed batteries to serve the grid during times of peak demand. Residential solar installer Sunrun has partnered with utility Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) to enroll solar and energy storage customers in a program called Peak Power Rewards, which compensates customers for dispatching power during times of peak demand on the grid. Sunrun enrolled 8,500 customer systems in California, operating the assets as a distributed network that forms a power grid. Under the program, the assets deliver ..read more