In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Three standout solar, storage, and financing trends emerged between July 2020 and June 2021.
• India reaches a milestone of 100 gigawatts of clean energy.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

2020-21 rooftop solar and storage trends

Online US solar marketplace EnergySage, which is supported by the US Department of Energy, today released its 13th semi-annual “Solar Marketplace Intel Report.” It’s an analysis of millions of solar and battery quotes provided to homeowners by solar companies on EnergySage between July 2020 to June 2021.

Here are three key insights from the latest report:

Solar prices continue to decrease, and battery storage prices are creeping up. Quoted solar prices decreased more than 6% year-over-year. The median battery storage price increased 10% on a cost per kilowatt-hour basis.

Three battery storage companies control 85% of the market. In the second half of 2021, Enphase overtook both LG Energy Solution and Tesla as the most frequently quoted battery brand on EnergySage. The three brands made up 85% of storage quotes over the last year. Further, newbies Q CELLS and NeoVolta overtook Tesla as the least expensive battery brands on the marketplace.

Solar loan rates are becoming more consumer-friendly. After three years of stagnation, solar loan rates on EnergySage began to drop, decreasing to 2.99% in the first half of 2021. The most frequently quoted financing option is now a 12-year loan with a 2.99% rate.

The full report can be downloaded for free here.

Read more: Finally, a new bill calls for tax credits for integrated solar roofs

India’s clean energy milestone

India’s clean energy capacity has reached the 100-gigawatt (GW) milestone. According to the Indian government last Thursday [via the Hindustan Times]:

Today India stands at fourth position in the world in terms of installed RE [renewable energy] capacity, fifth in solar, and fourth in wind in terms of installed capacity.

India has also enhanced its ambition to install 450 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. If large hydro is included the installed RE capacity increases to 146 GW.

To put that in perspective, India has a power generation capacity of 383.73 gigawatts. Further, it’s a particularly interesting development since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government currently refuses to agree to a net zero by 2050 target.

India is the world’s third-largest carbon emitter after China and the US, but its per capita carbon emissions are among the lowest globally.

On Friday, Modi announced a vehicle scrapping policy, which will phase out and recycle old vehicles using a systematic process. He said [via the Times of India]:

The policy will give a new identity to India in the mobility and auto sector. It will play a major role in removing unfit vehicles from our roads in a scientific manner. It will modernize the vehicular population on our city roads.

The scrappage policy details can be read here, and the new policy is expected to give a big boost to electric vehicle sales in India.

As Electrek‘s Fred Lambert wrote last week, India is reportedly considering Tesla’s proposal to greatly reduce import duties for electric cars, which would enable the automaker to finally enter the market.

Photo: “Bayview Home” by mjmonty is licensed under CC BY 2.0

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