Industry Data

Today, solar energy represents less than 1 percent of the U.S. energy mix. However, as a result of growing awareness about reliable, off-the-shelf technology, concerns about rising costs, energy security and supplies, and new state and federal tax incentives, deployment of solar energy has exploded since 2005.

Key Data Points

Size of U.S. Market
At yearend 2007, the U.S. had just over 3,400 megawatts of installed solar power. This included 750 MW of PV, 418 MW of utility-scale concentrating solar power, and 2,250 MW (thermal equivalent) of solar hot water systems.

Ranking of U.S. Market

The U.S. ranks fourth in the world for installed solar power. Germany (with the solar resources of Alaska) is first, Japan is second, and Spain is third.

Growth of U.S. Market

Installed grid-tied solar PV grew more than 48 percent in 2007 compared to 2006. Growth was led by larger projects including the 14 MW solar PV installation at Nellis Air Force Base and large companies and big-box retailers adding solar to fleets of their buildings. The pool-heating market continued steady growth of 8 percent. And utility-scale grew 18 percent

Growth of U.S. Manufacturing

Solar energy manufacturing grew 74 percent in 2007, led by expanded capacity of thin-film PV, silicon manufacturing (solar now outpaces the computer chip demand), and other equipment production.

Photovoltaic Ranking for 2007

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