Posted Tuesday, January 7, 2020

The Explosive Growth of Solar in the Southeastern US

You may not know it, but if you live in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, or elsewhere in the southeastern United States, you’re living in an area that is experiencing a colossal solar power boom.

In 2019, solar industry analysts knew that solar power project expenditures would rise in this part of the country. But even they couldn’t have predicted the explosive growth that is now unfolding in this region.

Now that 2020 is upon us, renewable energy sector economists are sharpening their pencils in light of this unprecedented growth.

Regional Solar By the Numbers

A well-known and highly reputable solar industry-aligned organization—The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, or SACE—initially projected solar power installed capacity for 2021 to be around 15 gigawatts (GW) in this part of the country.

Recent revisions to that number, however, have seen it rise to more than 17 gigawatts, an increase of more than 13%.

There are numerous factors that play into this ongoing rise in installed solar power capacity. One of these factors is commercial interest from companies like Facebook and Google.

Facebook has recently committed to sizeable solar power projects in three states in the southeast (Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee). Google has similar goals as they roll out solar power development plans that will provide their southeastern-region data centers with the electricity they’ll need to function.

Other significant commercial players include Wal-Mart, Target, and Johnson & Johnson.

The Local Hero

In Florida, one company in particular is leading the charge to develop more solar projects, and that company is Florida Power and Light.

FPL recently committed to installing 30 million solar panels in the state before the year 2030, a decade-long ambition that will almost assuredly change the energy profile of the Sunshine State for the better.

Thanks to the forward-thinking actions that FPL is taking today, the future of solar in Florida—and for that matter, the rest of the southeastern US—is looking quite bright indeed.

Have you been thinking about adding solar to your home or business? There’s never been a better time to do it, and Urban Solar can help.

Contact us today, and ask us about our free, no-obligation Energy Assessment, which will tell you how much you could save on your energy bills by going solar.