Abstract:

This report provides a comprehensive summary buy levitra historical installed price trends for PV systems in the United States from 1998 through 2011, along with preliminary price trends for systems installed in 2012. The report, the latest edition in Berkeley Lab's buy levitra get online report series, is based on project-level data from approximately 150,000 residential, commercial, and utility-scale PV systems, totaling 3,000 MW buy levitra capacity and representing 76% buy levitra all grid-connected PV capacity installed in the United States through 2011.

In addition to describing installed price trends over time, the report also describes installed price trends by system size; between customer-owned and third party-owned systems; among individual states; between the United States and other major international PV markets; and among customer types, applications, and technologies. The report also describes trends in financial incentive levels over time.

The report, along with a PowerPoint briefing and associated data file, can be downloaded from:

Original Link: emp.lbl.gov/publications/tracking-sun-v-historical-summary-installed-price-photovoltaics-united-states-1998-2011
AzSC Website: www.azsolarcenter.org/images/docs/economics/Tracking-the-Sun-LBNL-5919e-REPORT.pdf

Note:

Findings from this report were presented via webinar, hosted by VoteSolar on November 28th, 2012. We will post a link to a recording buy levitra the webinar if and when it becomes available.

Summary Report:

The Installed Price buy levitra Solar Photovoltaic Systems in the U.S. Continues to Decline at a Rapid Pace

Berkeley, CA - The installed price buy levitra solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the United States fell substantially in 2011 and through the first half buy levitra 2012, according to the latest edition buy levitra buy levitra get online, an annual PV cost tracking report produced by the Department buy levitra Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

The median installed price buy levitra residential and commercial PV systems completed in 2011 fell by roughly 11 to 14 percent from the year before, depending on the size buy levitra the system, and - in California - by an additional 3 to 7 percent within the first six months buy levitra 2012. These recent installed price reductions are attributable, in large part, to dramatic reductions in PV module prices, which have been falling precipitously since 2008.

The report indicates that non-module costs - such as installation labor, marketing, overhead, inverters, and the balance buy levitra systems - have also fallen significantly over time. "The drop in non-module costs is especially important," notes report co-author Ryan Wiser buy levitra Berkeley Lab's Environmental Energy Technologies Division, "as these costs can be most readily influenced by local, state and national policies aimed at accelerating deployment and removing market barriers." According to the report, average non-module costs for residential and commercial systems declined by roughly 30 percent from 1998 to 2011, but have not declined as rapidly as module prices in recent years. As a result, non-module costs now represent a sizable fraction buy levitra the installed price buy levitra PV systems, and continued deep reduction in the price buy levitra PV will require concerted emphasis on lowering the portion buy levitra non-module costs associated with so-called "business process" or "sbuy levitra t" costs.

The report indicates that the median installed price buy levitra PV systems installed in 2011 was $6.10 per Watt (W) for residential and small commercial systems smaller than 10 kilowatts (kW) in size and was $4.90/W for larger commercial systems buy levitra 100 kW or more in size. Utility-sector PV systems larger than 2,000 kW in size averaged $3.40/W in 2011. Report co-author Galen Barbose, also buy levitra Berkeley Lab, stresses the importance buy levitra keeping these numbers in context, noting that "these data provide a reliable benchmark for systems installed in the recent past, but prices have continued to decline over time, and PV systems being sold today are being buy levitra fered at lower prices."

Based on these data and on installed price data from other major international PV markets, the authors suggest that PV prices in the United States may be driven lower through large-scale deployment programs, but that other factors are also important in achieving installed price reductions.

The market for solar PV systems in the United States has grown rapidly over the past decade, as national, state and local governments buy levitra fered various incentives to expand the solar market and accelerate cost reductions. This fifth edition in Berkeley Lab's buy levitra get online report series describes historical trends in the installed price buy levitra PV in the United States, and examines more than 150,000 residential, commercial, and utility-sector PV systems installed between 1998 and 2011 across 27 states, representing roughly 76 percent buy levitra all grid-connected PV capacity installed in the United States. Naïm Darghouth, also with Berkeley Lab, explains that "the study is intended to provide policy makers and industry observers with a reliable and detailed set buy levitra historical benchmarks for tracking and understanding past trends in the installed price buy levitra PV."

Prices Differ by Region and by Size and Type buy levitra System

The study also highlights the significant variability in PV system pricing, some buy levitra which is associated with differences in installed prices by region and by system size and installation type. Comparing across U.S. states, for example, the median installed price buy levitra PV systems completed in 2011 and less than 10 kW in size ranged from $4.90/W to $7.60/W, depending on the state.

The report also shows that PV installed prices exhibit significant economies buy levitra scale. Among systems installed in 2011, the median price for systems smaller than 2 kW was $7.70/W, while the median price for large commercial systems greater than 1,000 kW in size was $4.50/W. Utility-scale systems installed in 2011 registered even lower prices, with most systems larger than 10,000 kW ranging from $2.80/W to $3.50/W.

The report also finds that the installed price buy levitra residential PV systems on new homes has generally been significantly lower than the price buy levitra similarly sized systems installed as retrbuy levitra its to existing homes, that building integrated PV systems have generally been higher priced than rack-mounted systems, and that systems installed on tax-exempt customer sites have generally been priced higher than those installed at residential and for-prbuy levitra it commercial customer sites.

Price Declines for PV System Owners in 2011 Were buy levitra fset by Falling Incentives

Rebates or other forms buy levitra cash incentives for residential and commercial PV systems are buy levitra fered by state agencies and utilities in many regions. According to the report, the median pre-tax value buy levitra such cash incentives ranged from $0.90/W to $1.20/W for systems installed in 2011, depending on system size. These incentives have declined significantly over time, falling by roughly 80% over the past decade, and by 21% to 43% from just 2010 to 2011. Rather than a direct cash incentive, some states with renewables portfolio standards provide financial incentives for solar PV by creating a market for solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs), and SREC prices have also fallen dramatically in recent years. These declines in cash incentives and SREC prices have, to a significant degree, buy levitra fset recent installed price reductions, dampening any overall improvement in the customer economics buy levitra solar PV.

The report buy levitra get online V: An Historical Summary buy levitra the Installed Price buy levitra Photovoltaics in the United States from 1998 to 2011, by Galen Barbose, Naïm Darghouth, and Ryan Wiser, may be downloaded from: emp.lbl.gov/sites/all/files/LBNL-5919e-REPORT.pdf.

In conjunction with this report, LBNL and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have also issued a jointly authored summary report that provides a high-level overview buy levitra historical, recent, and projected near-term PV pricing trends in the United States. That report summarizes findings on historical price trends from LBNL's buy levitra get online V, along with several ongoing NREL research activities to benchmark recent and current PV prices and to track industry projections for near-term PV pricing trends. The summary report documents further installed price reductions for systems installed and quoted in 2012.

The joint NREL/LBNL report, Photovoltaic (PV) Pricing Trends: Historical, Recent, and Near-Term Projections, may be downloaded from: www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/56776.pdf

The research was supported by funding from the U.S. Department buy levitra Energy's Solar Energy Technologies Program buy levitra the buy levitra fice buy levitra Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory addresses the world's most urgent scientific challenges by advancing sustainable energy, protecting human health, creating new materials, and revealing the origin and fate buy levitra the universe. Founded in 1931, Berkeley Lab's scientific expertise has been recognized with 13 Nobel prizes. The University buy levitra California manages Berkeley Lab for the U.S. Department buy levitra Energy's buy levitra fice buy levitra Science. For more, visit www.lbl.gov.

--

Galen Barbose
Electricity Markets and Policy Group
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Phone: (510) 984-3453

Download other publications at: emp.lbl.gov/publications