Five things you might not know about solar power in Maine!
- The US installed 1,665 megawatts (1 MW = 1,000 kw) of solar in the first quarter, 2016, accounting for a whopping 64% of New Electric Capacity!
- There are now more than one million solar installations in the United States, and the industry is projected to nearly double in size in 2016
- Nearly 209,000 Americans work in solar, more than double the number who work in the coal industry. The solar workforce is growing by 30% or more each year, while the coal mining industry continues to decline.
- The cost to install solar has dropped by more than 70% over the last 10 years, driving the technology’s rapid growth and allowing it to compete with conventional fuels not just for environmental benefits, but also on price.
- Though Maine and New Hampshire’s solar resource is nearly identical to that of Massachusetts’s, the Bay State has roughly than 10x of the solar penetration of its neighbors to the north.
Facts from: http://www.seia.org/research-resources/solar-market-insight-report-2016-q2
