Summary

This monthly report tracks generation (MWh) trends of utility scale solar and small scale solar at the national and state level. Small-scale solar PV installations, defined by having capacity of less than 1 megawatt (MW), are usually located at the customer’s site of electricity consumption. In addition, capacity (MW) for battery technology added by month is included in this report.

Note: Analysis excludes solar thermal generation.

Source

Analysis and data for this report was done by Zpryme using the U.S. EIA Monthly Energy Review, EIA form 861M detailed data, and EIA form EIA 860 monthly data.

U.S. Solar Trends Through April 2021

• From January to April 2021, cumulative total solar generation totaled 46,851 GWh. This is a 20.7% increase over the same time period in 2020. During this time period in 2021, utility scale solar accounted for 69.4% of total solar generation and small scale solar came in at 30.6%.

• From January to April 2021, cumulative utility scale solar generation totaled 32,499 GWh. This is a 23.1% increase over the same time period in 2020.

• From January to April 2021, cumulative distributed or small scale solar generation totaled 14,373 GWh. This is a 15.3% increase over the same time period in 2020.

• In April 2021 utility scale solar and small scale solar generation was 10,923 GWh and 4,593 GWh, respectively. Compared to April 2020, this represents a 25.6% increase in utility scale solar generation and a 16.9% increase in small scale solar generation.

• In April 2021, small scale residential solar represented 61.5% of total small scale solar generation. Commercial and industrial represented 30.8% and 7.8%, respectively.

• In April 2021, the top 5 states for small scale solar generation were California (1,846.9 GWh), Arizona (317.4 GWh), New York (267.3 GWh), New Jersey (261.0 GWh), and Massachusetts (256.4 GWh).

• In April 2021, the top 5 states for utility scale solar generation were California (3,524.0 GWh), North Carolina (1,062.0 GWh), Texas (954.0 GWh), Florida (874.0 GWh), and Arizona (595.0 GWh).

U.S. Battery Capacity and Projects Through April 2021

• In April 2021, 8 operational battery projects were added in the U.S., accounting for an additional 173.3 MW of capacity. Compared to March, cumulative operational battery capacity increased by 9.8% in April.

• From January to April 2021, cumulative operational battery projects totaled 232 with a capacity of 1,936.3 MW.

• Future planned capacity increased by 1,361.4 MW in April 2021, reaching a total of 13,372.6 MW. (vs 12,011.2 MW in March 2021).

• From January to April 2021, a total of 18 battery projects have been added in the U.S., accounting for an additional 445.6 MW of capacity.

• Since January 2020, U.S. operational battery capacity has increased by 952 MW or 95.0%.

• As of April 2021, 81.4% of battery capacity were owned by Non-CHP IPPs and 18.3% were owned by utilities.

• In April 2021, the top 5 states ranked by battery capacity were California (901.9 MW), Texas (233.0 MW), Illinois (132.7 MW), and Hawaii (93.0 MW), and Massachusetts (84.8 MW),

• In April 2021, the top 5 battery project owners ranked by capacity were LS Power (250.0 MW), AES (201.6 MW), NextEra Energy (115.0 MW), Strata Clean Energy (100.0 MW), and Broad Reach Power (69.3 MW).

• In April 2021, the top 5 battery project owners ranked by number of projects were AES (21), Advanced Microgrid Solutions (14), Duke Energy (7), Tesla (7), and SDG&E (7).