U.S. solar power capacity grew by more than two gigawatts during the second quarter of 2016, representing an astonishing 43 percent increase from the same period last year, according to the latest U.S. Solar Market Insight Report released on Monday by GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association.
“We’re seeing the beginning of an unprecedented wave of growth that will occur throughout the remainder of 2016, specifically within the utility PV segment,” said Cory Honeyman, associate director of U.S. solar research at GTM Research. “With more than 10 gigawatts of utility PV currently under construction, the second half of this year and the first half of 2017 are on track to continue breaking records for solar capacity additions.”
Solar is becoming an increasingly important part of the world’s renewable energy mix. In 2014, the International Energy Agency said the sun could be the planet’s biggest source of electricity by 2050.
GTM Research forecasts that more than 30 states will add more than 100 megawatts of annual capacity by 2021, with 20 of those states becoming home to more than one gigawatt of total operating solar PV.
According to the Oklahoma Renewable Energy Council, Oklahoma is home to the 8th best solar resource in the nation.