Community solar is booming but there are issues impacting cost and value that need to be resolved to really allow it to live up to its potential in America. These areas are structural factors that push up the operating costs like policies that artificially reduce credit values for subscribers. There is also a need for policies that make financing community solar more favorable and increase its potential value to the grid.
Researchers are looking into whether or not energy storage can be something that helps bridge the gap between developers and utilities. Their hope is to make the relationship between the two stakeholders more transparent and less tenuous and expedite the slow, pricey interconnection process. They theorize that battery storage can help developers build larger systems and reduce curtailment levels to meet grid demands by controlling the exported generation from solar.
Ever cross-mate different PV connector brands and suffer the consequences? Solar Builder digs into this common problem. They walk through why this is a reoccurring issue and demonstrate the difference between design type certificates and individual testing. They describe both and lay out the technical and legal repercussions for contractors.
By now you’ve probably heard about the industry shaking Commerce Dept circumvention tariff on the horizon. Solar Builder gives you the very latest on the potential and actual impact on the industry, the status of things with the Commerce Dept, the main argument against the petition and the state of domestic manufacturing. The article also wraps up with an assessment on the impact of installers in America.
In this video Kerim Baran of SolarAcademy talks with Greg Sellers of Stable about the business of taking care of 10+ year old solar systems. They look at the difficulties that come with replacing and expanding old solar systems and the business possibilities available in this rapidly growing segment of the solar industry. The video is below.
Kerim Baran of SolarAcademy wraps up his hot startups conversation with Brian Hayden of HeatSpring, an expert online solar education site, with this description of CollectiveSun, a leading company that provides financing and project management assistance to nonprofit organizations seeking to go solar. The video is below.