U.S. Solar Manufacturing Sets Record With 9.3 GW Added in Q3 2024

The United States achieved a milestone in Q3 2024, adding a record-breaking 9.3 gigawatts (GW) of new solar module manufacturing capacity. With this expansion, U.S. solar module factories can now produce nearly enough to meet domestic solar demand.

The U.S. Solar Market Insight Q4 2024 report, published by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie, highlights significant developments in the sector. Five new or expanded factories in Alabama, Florida, Ohio, and Texas have brought the country’s total solar module manufacturing capacity to nearly 40 GW. Notably, U.S. silicon cell manufacturing resumed this quarter for the first time since 2019, marking a pivotal step in revitalizing America’s solar supply chain.

The U.S. solar industry installed 8.6 GW of new electricity generation capacity in Q3, a 21% year-over-year increase and the largest Q3 on record. The utility-scale segment led the way with 6.6 GW of new projects, driven by utilities and businesses responding to rising electricity demand. The commercial and community solar markets also saw robust growth, increasing by 44% and 12% year-over-year, respectively.

Texas remains the national leader in solar deployment, adding 2.4 GW of capacity in Q3, which accounts for 26% of all new capacity in 2024. Florida follows closely, with nearly 30,000 households adopting solar this year.

Over the past two years, 1.4 million American households have leveraged federal incentives to install solar, reducing energy costs and contributing to the clean energy transition. “Federal solar policies and increased private investments are strengthening our nation’s energy security and creating thousands of new job opportunities for American workers,” said SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper. “The United States is stepping up to take market share from foreign competitors and making sure that the jobs and economic growth from solar are benefiting American communities.”

“Our current outlook for the next five years has the U.S. solar industry growing 2% per year on average, reaching a cumulative total of nearly 450 GW by the end of 2029,” said Michelle Davis, head of solar research at Wood Mackenzie and lead author of the report. “Demand for solar remains robust, and annual installation forecasts would be higher if not for limitations the industry faces, including those related to interconnection, labor availability, supply constraints, and policy.”