Advances in commercial applications of potovoltaic technology in North America: 2009 update

The photovoltaic industry is growing rapidly. In North America, over the past decade, the number of commercially available products and companies devoting resources to this industry has grown substantially. This past year saw the debut of a number of new technologies and new corporate entrants into the market. Utility-scale project size continues to grow and break records. In 2009 module efficiencies continued to rise (gradually) while module prices dropped to unprecedented lows. Increased system data acquisition sophistication is on a path for convergence with Smart Grid technologies. Forecasting solar photovoltaic contributions to the grid is increasing in sophistication, responding to system operators' concerns about maintaining reliability in an environment with increased non-dispatchable generation.