The hardware race. It’s no secret that pricing for hardware keeps coming down. String and central inverters are now into the single digit pennies per watt which made entry into the market for microinverters that much harder. That pricing is coming down as well now and market share going up. Microinverters are coming in a timely situation because storage will play a much bigger role going forward, module level data will be helpful with time of use rate design and value is starting to outweigh price.
Freemium utility markets. After spending nearly $10 million on an attempt to stop solar in Florida, FPL (the largest monopoly in the State) is getting an additional $800 million to put into ratebase on which they will get a double digit guaranteed return. On the positive side, customer bills will be going up an average of 13% which makes solar more attractive.
Baseload gets support from above. New York went first, now Illinois, to keep nuclear power plants open. Many States before these gave special early cost recovery for nuclear power plants that were in development, and of course the biggest loan guarantees went to nuclear power plants. Utilities have found support from legislators to work together to make these plants more profitable, or at least break even. Someone should run a side by side analysis of solar+storage and nuclear incentives and let me know the results.
Off the grid but on the balance sheet. Not really but I am really happy to see the for profit social impact solar companies doing well. Companies like SunFunder have been able to put together the channels to deploy capital into hard to reach areas. Many times the challenge isn’t in the product or the need for it but the distribution network. Breaking through, at scale, drives economic growth much bigger than just solar.
- Greentech Media: They’re Taking Over Residential Solar, but Enphase and SolarEdge Still Face the Fight of Their Lives
- Palm Beach Post: Anger over FPL rate hike fuels call for utility regulation reform
- Utility Dive: Without the Clean Power Plan, are nuclear plants essential to combat climate change?
- Forbes: SunFunder Adds ‘Beyond The Grid’ Fund For Solar Projects In Places Without Electricity
- CleanTechnica: Global Solar Installations To Reach 76 GW In 2016, According To Mercom
- PV-Magazine: NREL creates solar PV competitive test site
- Renewable Energy World: Updated Guidelines for Residential PACE Financing Programs
- Wall Street Journal: Solar Company Verengo Cancels Bankruptcy Auction, Seeks Sale to Crius Energy Unit
Opinion
Have a great day!
Yann