Solar Adoption — State of the Union

Did you know less than 20% of potential solar rooftops are utilized, even in leading solar countries?

Here are some thoughts after an intriguing discussion with Gadi Hirsch from our corporate strategy team.

PV uptake is crucial in order to meet the #ClimateTargets, for energy security and independence, and for supporting greener and more efficient solutions for other sectors, e.g. transportation, industry, HVAC and more.

PV is already the top performer in the renewables domain, being the only green type of electricity generation the IEA says is “on track” to a net-zero trajectory. It is the cheapest in #LCOE terms; is the easiest to deploy everywhere (with over a 100 countries installing over 1MW of it last year!); and it is the closest one to end-users, lowering grid infrastructure costs if managed correctly.

Still, we are only at the beginning of the journey to tap into the full potential of #DistributedGeneration, as even the most advanced “solar countries” utilize < 20% of their solar potential.

So — how can we make it quicker and more equitable?

Traditional means of support do work, especially in early-stage markets. Using #NetMetering or generous feed-in tariffs, alongside customer rebates and/or tax credits, quickly creates significant market traction. The benefits of those in making the energy mix greener, lowering customers’ bills and utilizing untapped spaces for generation are significant, justifying the investment and also spurring end-use electrification and better grid management.

But what else can be done?

• Solar mandates, which drive building owners or construction companies to install solar on suitable rooftops, can help drive adoption in formerly untapped markets — new buildings, dense urban areas, and underutilized large commercial roofs. Still, as experience shows, systems must make economic sense with easy access to existing incentives, take structural limitations into effect, and be supported only to the extent they help solve other problems (such as grid strains).
• Monetizing new business models— adjusting regulation to accommodate paying for flexibility services, subscriptions to energy communities and local self-consumption schemes, driving P2P trading initiatives and allowing more diverse financing schemes can all help drive solar in unused rooftops, or for a better utilization of the existing installed capacity — benefitting system owners.
• Incentivizing novel installation types is also required. If solar is installed on facades (#BIPV), over agricultural fields (#agrivoltaics), on water bodies (#FloatingPV) and other dual-use applications — the world can reach much broader installation figures more quickly, benefitting additional stakeholders. This, however, requires solution tailored to those segment, from hardware to services and installations know-how.

What else is holding us back? How can we drive uptake in existing and new segments? Share your thoughts.