Ground-Mounted Solar Demand Surpassing Bulding-Mounted in US Market

Take it as a good sign there is enough segmentation in the solar energy market that we can distinguish easily between ground- and building-mounted types and analyze data.  Demand for the ground-mounted variety has been greater for most fiscal quarters since Q1 2012, according to data adapted from North America PV Markets.

One driver of this extra demand is the growth of utility solar projects and ones that employ parking structures for siting PV panels.  These projects are considered ground mounted, which is reasonable because carports are not buildings.  There is an advantage to using carports because they already exist, meaning no new construction is necessary to support PV panels, and they have their own space, so no new land is needed for the solar projects.

The amount of parking space potentially available may be tremendous.  “It was estimated by some energy analysts that there may be over five billion acres of usable parking lots available for solar installations.

Ground-Mounted Solar Demand Surpassing Bulding-Mounted in US Market