Solar Love
  • Rooftop Solar
    • Energy Storage
  • Solar Panels
  • Policy
  • Research
    • Science
    • Market Research
    • Solar Perceptions & Polls

Solar Love

  • Rooftop Solar
    • Energy Storage
  • Solar Panels
  • Policy
  • Research
    • Science
    • Market Research
    • Solar Perceptions & Polls
Going SolarSolar $Solar Research

Department Of Energy Updates Report On Utility Scale Solar

by Glenn Meyers November 4, 2015
written by Glenn Meyers November 4, 2015
Department Of Energy Updates Report On Utility Scale Solar

This 2014 report from the US Department of Energy provides an empirical analysis of project cost, performance, and pricing trends in the United States. It should be pointed out other utility scale solar projects are also being launched elsewhere in the world.

Mojave desert solar array at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.

This introductory text, authored by Mark Bolinger and Joachim Seel from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory puts the significant growth of utility scale solar into perspective.

“Other than the nine Solar Energy Generation Systems (“SEGS”) parabolic trough projects built in the 1980s, virtually no large-scale or “utility-scale” solar projects – defined here to include any groundmounted photovoltaic (“PV”), concentrating photovoltaic (“CPV”), or concentrating solar thermal power (“CSP”) project larger than 5 MWAC – existed in the United States prior to 2007. By 2012 – just five years later – utility-scale had become the largest sector of the overall PV market in the United States, a distinction that was repeated in both 2013 and 2014 and that is expected to continue for at least the next few years. Over this same short period, CSP also experienced a bit of a renaissance in the United States, with a number of large new parabolic trough and power tower systems – some including thermal storage – achieving commercial operation.”

The authors state that this critical mass of new utility-scale projects now online “is ripe for analysis.” As such, this report analyzes everything from installed project costs and prices to operating costs and capacity factors. Importantly, it also reviews power purchase agreement (“PPA”) prices from a large sample of US utility-scale solar projects.

Here is a snapshot of what is included in this report:

  • Installation Trends
  • Installed Prices
  • Operation and Maintenance (“O&M”) Costs
  • Capacity Factors
  • PPA Prices

This report concludes the amount of utility-scale solar capacity will maintain its present momentum through 2016. At the end of 2014, there was at least 44.6 GW of utility-scale solar power capacity making its way through interconnection queues across the nation (though concentrated in California and the Southwest).

The authors conclude: “…it will still mean an unprecedented amount of new construction in 2015 and 2016 – as well as a substantial amount of new data to collect and analyze in future editions of this report.”

Obtain a PDF version of this report on utility scale solar. It is well worth the read.

Image via SEIA

Capacity FactorsDepartment of Energy Updates Report On Utility Scale SolarInstallation TrendsInstalled PricesOperation and Maintenance (“O&M”) CostsPPA PricesSEIA
0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterPinterest
Glenn Meyers

previous post
SunEdison Wins 500 MW Solar PV Bid In India At Record-Breaking Tariff
next post
10-Fold Energy Density Increase In Solar Thermal Research

You may also like

EDF Renewables Commissions 110 Megawatts Of Solar In...

October 30, 2018

Solar Bids In India Decline After Duty Reprieve

May 16, 2018

India Plans 20 Gigawatt Solar Tender To Circumvent...

May 16, 2018

Invenergy Signs PPA With Georgia Power For 160...

May 14, 2018

India’s Largest Solar Cell Manufacturer Charts Aggressive Growth...

May 10, 2018

SunPower Reports Topsy-Turvy First Quarter Earnings

May 9, 2018

JA Solar Reports Strong 2017 Financials, Ships Record...

May 7, 2018

First Solar Reports Strong Start To 2018 As...

May 7, 2018

Global Solar PV Inverters Market To Decline From...

April 25, 2018

As Solar Bids Firm Up, Indian State Cancels...

April 24, 2018

Follow Me

Facebook

Recent Posts

  • Meet PVCase: A 3D Solar Design Software That Every PV Designer Should Consider

    June 12, 2019
  • Mitsui To Partner With Indian Company For Distributed Solar Projects

    June 10, 2019
  • India’s NTPC Offers Solar Project Management Services To ISA Members

    June 9, 2019
  • Equinor & Scatec Solar Complete 162 Megawatt Brazilian Solar Plant

    November 29, 2018
  • Gamesa Awarded 400 Megawatt Solar Project In Egypt

    November 29, 2018
  • Facebook

@2019 - All Right Reserved solarlove.org


Back To Top