The new climate law is upending the solar landscape
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The year since passage of the big climate law has brought over $100 billion in U.S. solar and storage company investments.
Why it matters: New data from the Solar Energy Industries Association — a major industry trade group — on private investment suggests the law's subsidies for manufacturing and generation are significantly boosting industry activity levels.
- The chart above shows how SEIA and the consultancy Wood Mackenzie see the law boosting power projects.
The big picture: On the manufacturing side, the last year has seen billions worth of project announcements from companies like First Solar, Maxeon and Qcells.
- Overall, in the year since passage, there have been 51 new or expanded manufacturing projects announced, SEIA said.
- "By 2026, the U.S. will have over 17 times its current manufacturing capacity across modules, cells, wafers, ingots, and inverters when these announced factories are in operation."
The bottom line: Counterfactuals are hard because the industry was growing already, but seems safe to say the new federal subsidies are accelerating activity — a lot.
