Please invest in Our Daily Planet today, by making a one time or monthly contribution.
We do not charge our readers a subscription fee for our content. We want to continue to grow our readership, particularly among millennials and public servants. Voluntary contributions from readers will help us employ interns and freelance journalists, expand our content, and reach a larger audience.
If you make a contribution of $150 or more, you will become an official “Friend of the Planet” and receive a Friend of the Planet T-shirt or water bottle.
Our Daily Planet is a daily morning email (M-F) to keep you informed of the stories shaping our environment. If these issues matter to you, we’d like to be the best ten minutes of your morning.
The coronavirus economic disruption may slow solar power installations in 2020, but the industry is still poised for big growth if the last ten years of history is a guide. Even with the Trump administration’s policy challenges and continued tariffs on solar tile imports, 40%of all new electric generating capacity in the U.S. was solar, its highest share ever and more than any other source of electricity, according to a new report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie. Solar installations accounted for 13.3 Gigawatts in 2019, and that was a 23% increase over 2018 installations.
Why This Matters: Solar power is on its way now. The total amount of solar power operating in the U.S. now exceeds 76 GW, up from just 1 GW at the end of 2009. And according to the Wood Mackenzie report, the total installed solar capacity is projected to rise by 47% in 2020, with nearly 20 GW of new installations and each of the next two years are expected to be the largest on record for the U.S. solar industry. And a huge part of the growth of solar is residential rooftop installations. The future of solar is clearly bright — particularly as compared to fossil fuels.
Solar Growing By Leaps and Bounds Despite Policy and Pandemic Challenges
The solar industry’s leadership is closely monitoring changes to the demand and supply chains that may be caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but they remain optimistic because the industry has proved to be resilient in the stops and starts of its development over the last eleven years.
Abigail Ross Hopper, President and CEO of SEIA said, “We know anecdotally that the COVID-19 pandemic is starting to impact delivery schedules and that it could affect demand for solar as well as our ability to meet project completion deadlines based partly on new labor shortages. This once again is testing our industry’s resilience, but we believe, over the long run, we are well-positioned to outcompete incumbent generators in the ‘Solar+ Decade’ and to continue growing our market share.”
Residential Rooftop Solar Drives Growth
The residential solar sector set records for installations with more than 2.8 GW installed, led by a record year in California and continued demand in the northeastern states. But there are pockets of new growth as well, such as Texas and Florida, along with a strong year in established markets like Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina. The industry experts believe that over the next five years, the total installed solar power capacity will more than double, with annual installations expanding to 20.4 GW in 2021 prior to the expiration of the federal solar Investment Tax Credit for residential systems unless Congress can be persuaded to extend the tax credit in order to keep encouraging this double-digit growth.
We spoke this week with Brandon Hurlbut, who helped to organize thousands of clean energy supporters to work to elect Joe Biden President. He is also an expert on energy policy, politics, and finance. He co-hosts the popular podcast Political Climate, with Friend of the Planet, Julia Pyper. And he was the Chief of Staff […]
by Miro Korenha and Natasha Lasky Boeing, the world’s largest aerospace company, recently announced that all of its planes will be capable and certified to fly on 100% sustainable aviation fuels by 2030. The move was a response to mounting pressure felt by the aviation industry to reduce emissions and as Boeing explained in a […]
According to a new study by the energy analysts at Wood Mackenzie, the cost of solar power is expected to decrease another 15%-25% over the next decade due to developing technologies already in the pipeline, which could make it the lowest-cost power source in the U.S. by 2030. Solar is poised for both U.S. and […]
Subscribe to the email that top lawmakers, renowned scientists, and thousands of concerned citizens turn to each morning for the latest environmental news and analysis.
Want the lastest climate news summarized for you each morning?
Our Daily Planet is your daily dose of the stories shaping our world and the ways that you can take action. From the climate crisis to the protection of biodiversity, if these issues matter to you then please subscribe & stay informed!
Your privacy is Important! We promise never to use your email address to send you spam or advertisements.