Massachusetts Achieves Solar Energy Goal, Sets Higher One

BOSTON — Achieving its state goal of 250 megawatts (MW) of solar energy four years early, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick announced a new, more ambitious state goal of 1.6 gigawatts (GW) to be installed by 2020.

At the May 1 announcement, Governor Patrick was joined by Boston-based Broadway Electrical Company, Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Richard K. Sullivan Jr., Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Mark Sylvia, and Alicia Barton, CEO and executive director of the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center. The announcement was made on the rooftop of 21, 23 and 25 Drydock Avenue in Boston’s Innovation District, with the backdrop of Broadway’s 568.7-kilowatt rooftop solar PV system. The system has been in operation for over a year now, and the power is sold to the building’s leasers, Atlanta-based real-estate company Jamestown Properties.

While several states have set up incentives for solar installations, Massachusetts has one of the fastest growth rates in the industry, rising to more than 250 MW from 15 MW in 2009. In 2012, the state installed 198 MW of solar power — the sixth most of any state, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). And Massachusetts is ranked seventh in terms of installed solar capacity with 4,500 solar professionals working at 229 companies.

A lot of the success is due to the solar initiatives, including Solarize Massachusetts, Commonwealth Solar Green Communities and Leading by Example, which the state put in place. These solar programs offer a slew of incentives from tax credits to tax exemptions to utility rebates.

In 2012, $476 million was invested to install solar power in Massachusetts homes and businesses. This 210 percent growth from the previous year is expected to grow again in 2013.

Today, the U.S. has 7,700 MW of installed solar electric capacity, and 40 percent of that was installed just last year. According to the SEIA, it is the fastest growing and most affordable clean-energy technology available today. National prices for residential and commercial PV system installations have dropped by 14 percent from last year and 31 percent since 2010.