Utility Integrated Solar Power Grew 100% in 2010

Utility Integrated Solar Power Grew 100% in 2010

Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) has released its latest report which showed that U.S. electric utility providers are including more and more solar power generation in their portfolios and much of this increases is happening outside of California. (Click here for the Executive Summary of the report)

The Solar Electric Power Association’s (SEPA) fourth annual Top 10 Utility Solar Rankings report analyzes utility solar electricity markets in the United States, focusing particularly on the top utilities that are driving solar electric power growth. The SEPA Top 10 Utility Solar Rankings measure a utility’s newly installed solar power and include photovoltaic and concentrated solar power technologies interconnected between January 1 and December 31, 2010. There are two rankings categories: Solar Megawatts, which measure a utility’s total solar capacity added that year, and Solar Watts-per-Customer, which is a measure of the utility’s new solar installed divided by its number of customers.

The results are intriguing and bode well for the future of solar throughout the U.S. The top 10 ranked utilities integrated 561 megawatts (MW) of solar electricity capacity in 2010, representing 100% growth since 2009. Seven of the utilities on the the SEPA list are from states outside of California and four of the top-ranking utilities were located in the Eastern United States. In addition, SEPA found that 63% of the utilities from outside of California are the largest percentage accounted. Also in 2010, thirty utilities reported owning 140 MW of solar, as opposed to purchasing the power from facilities owned by others, which represents a stunning 300% increase over 2009.

Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) topped the Solar Megawatt ranking in 2010 with 157 MW of solar power while Florida Power & Light Company (FPLC) was in second place 82 MW of added solar capacity (for FPLC, this is amazing considering that Florida has virtually no state solar incentives). New Jersey’s Public Service Electric & Gas Co. (PSEG) was in third place with 75 MW of solar capacity added in 2010.

In the Solar Watts-per-Customer ...

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