Residential PV

Can the solar industry’s biggest conference make the transition from mulitday marathon to six weeks of virtual “microconferences”? Opening sessions started strong, pragmatic and urgent — with a focus on collaboration and the opportunities ahead.

This is a highly anticipated, high-stakes proceeding that will effectively modify the rules for the NEM tariff in California, arguably the single most important policy mechanism for customer-sited solar over the last decade.

Also in the brief: Solar in schools

Also in the brief: Jacked-up vendor curves, and Major League Soccer goes solar.

A recent report by Wood Mackenzie has asserted that U.S. residential solar finance will “falter” in 2020 has been dubbed the “worst forecast of 2020” by a prominent industry figure. And while the market seems to be sustaining financial health, decreasing installation figures could be cause for concern.

“Putting a price on GHG emissions creates an economic incentive to allocate capital toward the development of new lower-emitting technologies,” claims a report from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

Also in the brief: BayWa r.e. expands PV and storage capabilities with acquisition of Enable Energy, Hemlock Semiconductor to vertically integrate polysilicon production.

Since the 1970s, solar-powered energy has been making a powerful push in the United States — which cities have been leaders in embracing the revolution?

The public-private partnership will put 10-12 MW of solar on commercial rooftops, multifamily housing and schools, but could face regulatory barriers to third-party ownership and net metering.

A high level of distributed solar in Indiana would reduce utility costs by up to $540 million per year, a national lab has found. Fair compensation for rooftop solar power in southern Indiana would be 13¢/kWh, an expert calculated—not the 3¢/kWh proposed by a utility.