The U.S. residential solar market hit record highs in the third quarter of 2019 with 712 megawatts of solar installed, according to the U.S. Solar Market Insight report from SEIA/WoodMac Power & Renewables.

Key takeaways from the report:

The U.S. installed 2.6 GWdc of PV in Q3, a 45% increase year-over-year.

The U.S. added a record 712 MW of residential solar capacity in Q3.

California added almost 300 MW of residential PV.

The contracted utility PV pipeline hit a record high of 45.5 GWdc.

Total installed U.S. PV capacity will more than double over the next five years.

New growth drivers in California



Perennial solar leader California installed a record 300 MW of residential PV in Q3, although the “growth drivers have shifted,” according to Austin Perea, senior solar analyst for Wood Mackenzie.

Perea suggests that it’s “new- build solar demand” and “consumer interest in solar + storage solutions as a result of public safety power shutoffs” that are driving this record growth.

Non-residential PV is the one bit of bad news