By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

The sun slowly starts its global domination.

Look out, wind – solar is about to catch you.

That’s the headline from Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis Global Power Industry Outlook, 2018, which posits that solar will surpass wind in global energy capacity starting in 2020, making it the fourth largest source of energy generation behind coal, gas and hydro. Less than a year ago, solar surpassed nuclear energy to reach fifth place.

The report says increased battery energy storage capabilities, surges in merger and acquisition activities, and disruptive energy start-ups are the primary reasons the renewable energy sector is seeing this surge – and solar has, so far, been the primary beneficiary of this energy capacity expansion.

The report also predicts that $2.2 trillion will be invested in new energy capacity through 2021, including more than $600 billion in the solar sector alone.

“To navigate through current trends and challenges, organizations must start embracing business models that enhance operational and process efficiency while reducing costs,” said said Vasanth Krishnan, Energy & Environment Analyst at Frost & Sullivan. “Adopting disruptive digital solutions that focus on consumer needs will bring the organization closer to technological and efficiency transformation.”

The report also highlights several other global energy sector trends, including:

“Analyzing long-term scenarios and defining positioning strategies should be key focus areas for industry participants in the long term,” noted Krishnan. “Also, as the renewable and distributed energy markets mature, a large installed capacity of equipment will need to be serviced, offering attractive growth prospects within the operations and maintenance sector.”

For access to the executive summary, click here.

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Water wet. Pope Catholic. Businesses are trying to fight climate change.

Go figure.

According to Deloitte’s eighth annual Energy Resources Report, businesses and consumers are moving forward to create what it calls a “virtuous cycle” of sustainability, including moving to cleaner energy sources like solar. But the study also finds what instinct might tell you from watching American behavior over the past 30 years – businesses are leading the charge, and the people are following.

The survey questioned more than 1,500 residential consumers and 600 businesses on their energy use patterns and found that “is leading many businesses to develop and deploy new tools for monitoring and reducing energy consumption, evolve their energy management policies and practices, explore expanding their use of renewable energy sources, and integrate their resource management programs more closely with their operations.”

Study authors also found 7 in 10 businesses say their customers expect them to get at least some of their energy from renewable sources, with 48% of them saying they are actively trying to do so. And even more telling was this statistic: 21% of the businesses say they are trying to green their energy consumption as a result of demands from business partners.

That’s why it’s so important to have businesses like Target and Walmart at the top of the Solar Energy Industries Association’s Solar Means Business report every year – with their extensive supply chains that extend throughout the world, decisions at the corporate level have real-world effects throughout the entire supply chain.

And that influence isn’t limited to supply chain partners. The authors write:

Residential consumers, particularly younger ones, seem increasingly keen on using clean energy sources in general, and on expanding the use of wind and solar power more specifically.

Such findings aren’t entirely a surprise to long-term solar industry observers, but it does provide some data to support those who say the clean energy revolution is only just beginning and will continue to grow for the foreseeable future.

Read the full report below.