Solar Capacity Heats Up

摘要

According to a report from an industry advocacy group, solar energy technology has eclipsed another milestone, this time in total installed capacity. The Solar Energy Industries Association, Washington, D.C., in partnership with the market research firm Wood Mackenzie, Annapolis, Md., reports that U.S. solar capacity passed 100 gigawatts (GW) in the first quarter of 2021. Released in June, the latest U.S. Solar Market Insight Report found that America's solar industry installed slightly more than S GW of solar in the first three months of this year. That number, too, is significant. It is a record for the first quarter and 46% higher than the same quarter last year. With this rapid growth, the industry has doubled in size over the last 31/2 years. These numbers aren't just significant for the industry itself. They help tell a story about the nation's energy landscape overall. With its rapid first-quarter growth, solar accounted for 58% of all new electric capacity additions in the United States, while renewables collectively accounted for nearly 100% of all new electric capacity in the time span. Also of note, the utility-scale sector accounted for a majority of solar installations, with its own first quarter record of 3.6 GW. For its part, residential solar sales added 905 megawatts, an 11% increase over the same period last year.