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Solar getting more expensive because of rising commodity, transport prices
Energy - SEPTEMBER 9, 2021

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Solar getting more expensive because of rising commodity, transport prices

by Mike Consol

The rise of the U.S. solar industry in recent years was based largely on the plunging cost of its equipment. The price of a solar panel alone declined by 70 percent from 2015 to 2020.

That was then, but the now is showing a different picture. For the first time in more than a decade, the average PV system prices for residential and commercial PV rooftop projects will increase year-over-year in 2021, according to new research published by Wood Mackenzie.

The main culprits are rising commodity prices and skyrocketing freight costs, resulting in a forecast that the cost of average residential systems will increase 1 percent, while average commercial rooftop projects will increase 3 percent during that time.

According to Wood Mackenzie, annual copper, aluminum and steel prices are set to increase. Copper is prevalent in PV products, including inverters and balance of system components such as cabling, combiner boxes, solar PV tracker controls and more, and will cau

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