Utilities aren’t exactly known for being solar friendly — distributed solar power disrupts their whole business model. But some of them have been better solar leaders than others. Read the Solar Love repost below for details on leading solar utilities in the US.
The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) recently released its latest SEPA Utility Solar Rankings. Of course, there are different ways to rank a utility on its solar merits, so we’re including SEPA’s main two lists/rankings below. First, however, a note from our sponsors….
Our sponsors, in all honesty, are you, common citizens and clean energy advocates. Our focus is on bringing more cleantech to the world so that we can combat global warming and avoid its worst effects… as well as other types of societal harm from dirty tech.
The note I wanted to make is that, yes, some utilities are doing more to be good “citizens” and reduce their carbon dioxide contribution. However, for the most part, the utility network and engrained utility models are having a hard time coming to grips with the fact that the grid is changing and distributed renewable energy is the future… and the future is now. There are a plethora of articles all about these matters, some of which are quite demonizing. And the demonization is quite warranted in many cases. However, it is also worth noting that some utilities are making notable strides forward (either against their will or voluntarily). So, with my brief contextual note out of the way, let’s go ahead and drool over not one but two Top 10 lists.
Top 10 Utilities For Solar (Per Customer)
I am a fan of relative rankings — this is what shows one’s true colors. So, I’ll start with SEPA’s rankings for the top 10 utilities for solar power watts per customer. Here’s is the list:
Following the rankings and utility names, the categories are for watts/customer, state, region, and type of utility. (Click to enlarge or visit the SEPA Utility Rankings webpage.)
Top 10 Utilities For Solar (Total Installation Capacity)
And here’s the list for top 10 utilities based on total solar power installation capacity:
Click to enlarge or visit the SEPA Utility Rankings webpage.
Not a lot of overlap there, eh?
For more information on the rankings, including some fun charts, check out the 2012 SEPA Utility Rankings Full Report (PDF) or Executive Summary (PDF). To interact with the tables and map of the rankings, head on over to the SEPA Utility Rankings webpage.