8 Things to Watch in Colorado's Solar Marketplace in 2012

By Neal Lurie, Executive Director, COSEIA
January 4, 2012

The solar marketplace in Colorado is changing at the speed of light. As we ramp up in 2012, here are eight things to watch in the year ahead as part of COSEIA’s ongoing efforts to expand solar markets. You can learn more about each of these at Solar Power Colorado, the largest business-to-business solar conference & expo in the state taking place February 9-10, 2012.

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1) Driving Down Costs: With solar PV costs decreasing 50-70% over the past three years – and some report seeing 50% decreases in 2011 alone – solar manufacturers are racing to achieve economies of scale. Rapidly decreasing costs can be a big challenge for inventory planning, though lower costs are good news for solar customers and will likely spark new demand. But how much lower will prices fall?
 
2) Streamlining Permit Processes: COSEIA is leading a coalition of local governments and nonprofit partners to help cities and counties become Solar Friendly Communities. Thanks to support from the U.S. Department of Energy, Colorado is at the forefront of an innovative new program to help streamline permit processes and to reduce the “soft costs” of going solar. The goal is to reduce non-hardware solar costs by more than 25% within the next three years.

3) Ramping Up Solar Thermal: We’re just a few weeks away from launching Colorado’s first ever roadmap to help make our state a leader in solar thermal. According to NREL & the Florida Solar Energy Center, solar water heating performs better in Colorado than in any state in the U.S. This natural advantage provides a huge economic opportunity.

4) Repowering Commercial-Scale Solar: The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is expected to finalize its ruling on Xcel Energy’s 2012-2013 renewable energy compliance plan in February-March 2012 – which will significantly influence the number of megawatts that will be added in the year ahead. This ruling can’t come soon enough. Much of the commercial solar PV marketplace has been frozen since summer 2011 due to restructuring of the Solar*Rewards program. Combined with uncertainty about the federal 1603 Program there is a new sense of urgency to bring stability and predictability to the commercial solar marketplace. 

5) Accelerating Solar Finance: Solar finance is big business and it will only get bigger. Last year more than $10 billion in financing was invested in the U.S. solar marketplace from large financial institutions and other investors. As huge as solar finance was in 2011 it is likely to generate billions more in 2012 and beyond. By removing the upfront cost it is easier for customers to go solar and provides a compelling ROI for investors and solar customers.

6) Growing Community Solar Gardens: Almost two years after HB-1342 was overwhelmingly passed by the Colorado Legislature, Community Solar Gardens are ready to sprout. As the PUC finalizes its program details in the weeks ahead, this new model will open up solar market opportunities to renters and those in locations without direct access to the sun. COSEIA is partnering with Xcel Energy to highlight how the community solar program will work in a special session at Solar Power Colorado.

7) Boosting Public Demand for Solar: After months of improving web infrastructure and finalizing campaign plans, 2012 is the year when Colorado’s public outreach and awareness campaign scales up. COSEIA’s new Go Solar Colorado! campaign is being launched this winter in collaboration with a range of nonprofit organizations and includes a special public outreach event on March 27.

8) Highlighting Fuel Costs: You don’t have to be an economist to realize that overdependence on a finite supply of fossil fuels will drive up energy prices for consumers and puts Colorado’s economy at risk. The only way to ensure our childrens' generation has lower energy prices than we do today is to promote energy efficiency and to transition to free fuels. Fossil fuels are expensive. Solar fuel is free. Consumers are starting to pay attention to this growing risk and it will accelerate new investment in solar.

To learn more about these eight emerging issues, and how to position your business and career for the opportunities ahead, mark your calendar to attend Solar Power Colorado >