Key updates from this Quarterly Solar Industry Update presentation:
- The United States installed 2.0 GWDC of PV in Q1 2017—42.9 GW total.
- Utility-scale PV added more than 1 GWDC for the sixth straight quarter.
- The distributed PV sector has been more challenged this year as large integrators pursue profitability at the expense of growth, customer acquisition remains a challenge, the potential for increased tariffs on modules and cells, and unseasonably rainy weather reduced installations in California.
- Solar accounted for approximately 25% of all new electricity generating capacity for the first five months of 2017, behind wind and natural gas. PV installations in the second half of the year are expected to be much larger than the first half of 2017.
- Seven states produced more than 6.5% of total net generation from solar in in the first five months of 2017, and an additional six states produced more than 2.5% of total net generation from solar.
- California generated 20% of its electricity from solar in May 2017.
- States continue to revise laws and regulations to manage continued growth of distributed and utility- scale PV.
- Thus far in 2017, five states have passed laws or regulations transitioning away from traditional retail net metering, and 24 states took action on net metering.
- From January 2017 to July 2017, module prices for larger buyers fell 8% to $0.33/W due to leveling off of global demand and increased competition for market share.
- U.S. module prices, however, increased to $0.40−$0.50/W due to fears of tariffs being put in place on all foreign c-Si modules and cells.