According to a new report from SEIA and GTM Research, the U.S. installed 930 megawatts (MW) of photovoltaics (PV) in Q3 2013.
This figure was 20 percent more than the second quarter of this year and 35 percent higher than Q3 2012. In terms of residential solar, it was the biggest quarter ever.
While the utility scale solar sector represented more than half of capacity installed, the residential market was no slouch with 186 MW installed. As mentioned in an earlier news item, one of the contributing factors driving home solar power uptake is the emergence of solar-as-a-service models; whereby the systems are third-party owned (TPO).
SEIA and GTM forecast that the U.S. will install a total of 4.3 GW of new solar PV capacity in 2013, up 27% over 2012. If this occurs, it will be the first year in more than a decade in which the U.S. installs more solar capacity than Germany.
The cost of residential systems fell 9.7% percent from Q3 2012 to Q3 2013 and installed costs reduced by 2% percent.
Close to 31,000 individual residential installations were completed during Q3, bringing the cumulative total in the U.S. to 360,000.
California’s solar capacity grew by 99 MW in Q3, up 22% over last quarter. With a strong final quarter also expected, California may be the first state to install over 100 MW of home solar in a single quarter.
There were 52 utility-scale PV projects completed during the quarter, totalling 539 MW of capacity.
SEIA/GTM state the non-residential sector has been contracting in some state markets – only nine of the 28 tracked states saw a quarterly increase in non-residential installations. While a flat 2013 is anticipated; a strong resumption of growth is expected in 2014.
U.S. Solar Market Insight is a quarterly publication of GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). Further details of the latest report can be viewed here.
