Solar Bouncing Back

U.S. Solar Market Adds 10.6 GW of PV in 2018, Residential Market Rebounds

March 13, 2019 (Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie)

“For the third year in a row, the U.S. solar industry installed double-digit gigawatts (GW) of solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity, with 10.6 GW coming online in 2018. The amount was a 2 percent decrease from 2017. However, the forecast shows the market rebounding in the years ahead…Total installed PV capacity in the U.S. is expected to rise by 14 percent in 2019 with annual installations reaching 15.8 GW in 2021…In 2018, non-residential PV saw an annual decline of eight percent due to policy transitions in major markets. Utility-scale solar underwent a seven percent contraction in 2018, largely related to Section 201 tariffs...[While annual growth fell in both the non-residential and utility-scale solar sectors, residential solar growth stabilized in 2018 after the previous year’s contraction..

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…In total, solar PV accounted for 29 percent of new electricity generating capacity additions in 2018, slightly less than in 2017 due to a surge in new natural gas plants. However, in 2018, 13.2 GW of utility-scale solar power purchase agreements were signed, pushing the contracted project pipeline to its highest point in the history of U.S. solar…Wood Mackenzie also increased its five-year forecast for utility PV by 2.3 GW since Q4 2018…[due to] the inclusion of more solar in long-term utility resource planning and an increase in project development driven by renewable portfolio standards and growing corporate interest…” click here for more

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