Could Decade-Old Florida Report Finally Be Relevant? Let’s Hope So

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

What Happened:After languishing for a decade in relative obscurity, it might finally be time to dust off a Navigant Consulting report on the solar capacity of Florida, now that the Public Service Commission (FPSC) has made third-party leasing a reality.

  • The Florida report, prepared for the FPSC in 2008, reported that the state’s potential solar production could reach nearly 56 GWh annually by 2020.
  • While the goals of the Florida report are impossible to reach in the original timeframe, the mind boggles at how quickly Florida could transform itself into one of the leading solar states.

    • Florida report

    SolarWakeup’s View:  Well, 2020 is no longer a realistic goal, but the Florida report created for the state’s Public Service Commission gives a tantalizing glimpse into what the future of the solar industry could be.

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    At the request of FPSC, Navigant Consulting prepared a report concerning the amount of power the sun could produce for the Sunshine State, and the short answer was that it could potentially provide a lot – 56 GWh, in fact. The report also found that, had investor-owned utilities started investing in solar heavily 10 years ago, they could be providing 23% of their electricity generation from renewalbe (a goal Florida Power & Light seems to trying to make in three years ever since it lost its battle to scotch third-party solar development in 2016 – but I digress).

    Florida, thanks to the outsized influence of its electric utilities, has struggled to reach its full solar potential in the past. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association’s latest data, there is currently only 1.4 GW of solar capacity there.

    But last week’s decision to legalize third-party solar leasing, Navigant Consulting’s Florida report has suddenly become relevant. It will be interesting to see how quickly it rises to its well-deserved status as the real sunshine state.

    More:

    Florida Public Service Commission OKs Sunrun’s Petition – So It’s Full Speed Ahead

    Sunrun Could Start Operating In Florida In Earnest Within A Month

    Bonus:

    The full 311-page report:

    FL_Final_Report_2008_12_29