WASHINGTON, March 2, 2016 - Solar surpassed natural gas
capacity additions for the first time in 2015, with solar installing 7.3
gigawatts (GW) and supplying 29.5 percent of all new electric generating
capacity in the U.S., according to GTM
Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). The findings
will be published March 9 in U.S. Solar
Market Insight report.
Led by California, North Carolina, Nevada, Massachusetts and
New York, the U.S. solar market experienced a year-over-year growth rate of 17
percent. The market continues to diversify geographically, with 13 states
installing more than 100 megawatts (MW) each in 2015. States that made major
solar advancements include Utah, which jumped in ranking from 23rd to
7th place, and Georgia, which moved from 16th to 8th,
according to the report.
The residential solar market grew 66 percent year-over-year
and, for the first time, surpassed two gigawatts (GW). The residential solar
segment now represents 29 percent of the entire U.S. solar market, its largest
share since 2009.
For the fourth year in a row, the non-residential market
broke the 1 GW mark, but remained roughly flat year-over-year.
The utility-scale sector, the mainstay of the U.S. solar
market, grew 6 percent year-over-year and represented more than half of all
solar PV installed in 2015.
Cumulative U.S. solar PV installations have now surpassed 25
GW, up from just 2 GW in 2010.
“Without a doubt, 2015 was a monumental year for the U.S.
solar industry, and perhaps what’s most amazing is that we’re only getting
started,” says SEIA President and CEO Rhone Resch. “Over the next few years,
we’re going to see solar continue to reach unprecedented heights as our nation
makes a shift toward a carbon-free source of energy that also serves as an
economic and job-creating engine.”
“The U.S. solar market remains concentrated in key states,
with the top 10 states accounting for 87 percent of installed capacity in
2015,” says Shayle Kann, senior vice president of GTM Research. “But growth has
been widespread, and 24 of the 35 states that we track individually saw market
growth in 2015.”
Here are some key findings from the report:
· The U.S. installed 7,286 megawatts of direct
current (MWdc) of solar photovoltaics (PV) in 2015, the largest total ever
and 17 percent above 2014.
· The 7.3 gigawatts (GW) installed in 2015 is 8.6
times the capacity installed five years earlier in 2010.
· Residential was the fastest growing sector,
installing over 2 gigawatts of direct current (GWdc) for the first time
and growing 66 percent over 2014.
· Utility solar PV also had a record year with
over 4 GW installed, up 6 percent over 2014.
· Non-residential solar was essentially flat for
the third year in a row, installing just over 1 GWdc.
· Cumulative solar PV installations reached more
than 25 GWdc by the end of the year, up from just 2 GW at the end of 2010.
#30
For more news, go to: www.Agri-Pulse.com
