BOULDER, Colo. — Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, which enable customers to generate some of their own electricity and sell unneeded power back to their utility, are just the most visible form of distributed energy resources (DER), notes Navigant Research. The growing affordability of DER technologies is altering utilities’ traditional relationship with residential customers by giving customers greater control of their energy consumption. According to a new report from the research firm, worldwide revenue from all forms of residential distributed generation and energy storage will grow from $52.7 billion annually in 2014 to $71.6 billion in 2023.

“Rooftop solar PV is just one of the technologies that are transforming the traditional residential power industry,” said Neil Strother, principal research analyst with Navigant Research. “Some of these technologies, such as residential combined heat and power (CHP), are in the early stages of market development, while solar panels are more mature. Nonetheless, these energy innovations and attractive financing mechanisms provide residential customers with new options.”

One key driver for this sector, according to the report, is continuing advances in new technologies, such as more efficient energy storage systems. These advances, along with government subsidies for energy storage systems, often in the form of feed-in tariffs, are enabling the combination of rooftop solar PV systems and residential energy storage in order to collect and store energy for use when sunlight is unavailable or there is a power outage.

An executive summary of the report is available here.

Publication date: 6/23/2014

Want more HVAC industry news and information? Join The NEWS on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn today!