Full Title: Utility-Scale Concentrating Solar Power and Photovoltaics Projects: A Technology and Market Overview
Author(s):
Publisher(s): U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date: April 1, 2012
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Description (excerpt):
Solar energy technologies continue to be deployed at unprecedented levels, aided significantly by the advent of large-scale projects that sell their power directly to electric utilities. Such utility- scale systems can deploy solar technologies far faster than traditional “behind-the-meter” projects designed to offset retail load. These systems achieve significant economies of scale during construction and operation, and in attracting financial capital, which can in turn reduce the delivered cost of power.
This is the first in a series of three reports on utility-scale solar installation in the United States. This report serves as: (1) a primer on utility-scale solar technologies and (2) a summary of the current state of the U.S. utility-scale solar market. The second report overviews policies and financing of utility-scale solar systems; the third report assesses the impact of financial structures on the cost of energy from utility-scale systems.