For utility-scale solar and storage developers and EPCs, sometimes the most useful question isn’t always which technology is the “best,” but rather which PV module or battery energy storage system (BESS) fits the site, financing terms, and long-term revenue plans. Now more than ever, developers and EPCs should develop scenario-first strategies for utility-scale energy systems. …
Author Archives: brayer
How Residential Solar Installers Can Use Module Procurement to Build Customer Trust
Homeowner trust in residential solar installers is improving but still fragile. Let’s take a closer look at the narrowing trust gap and how installers can close it with transparent pricing, verifiable credentials, and equipment built to last decades, even in harsh conditions. How Much Do Homeowners Trust Solar Companies? First, the good news: homeowner trust …
Fast, Durable, and Domestic: What C&I Module Procurement Teams Should Weigh Before Dec. 4
With a new round of Section 232 trade measures set to take effect on December 4, 2026, commercial and industrial (C&I) solar engineering, procurement, and construction (EPCs) firms must move quickly to secure C&I module supply. As buyers race toward yet another rapidly approaching regulatory deadline, EPCs must stay diligent in procuring highly reliable and …
Solving the Utility-Scale Siting Squeeze: How Component Innovations are Reshaping Solar+Storage Co-location Economics
Ask anyone building solar+storage co-location projects right now whether things have gotten easier over the past five years, and you probably won’t find a single hand raised. Interconnection timelines that used to take up to two years — already a long wait — now routinely stretch past four years, and almost a quarter of U.S. …
How Residential Solar Installers Can Build a Lower-Cost Growth Engine
Despite a slight decline in residential solar customer acquisition costs (CAC) in the first quarter of 2026, these costs remain one of the biggest variables impacting profitability for installers. Further complicating matters, this year’s forecasts and data depict a more nuanced equation than first glance might suggest. Understanding where acquisition costs are actually heading, and …
What Communities Actually Want From Local Large-Scale Solar Projects — and How Developers Can Deliver It
The utility-scale solar sector has never had stronger economics or greater overall demand. But the sector’s momentum is tempered by a factor few people are talking about at the macro level. One of the most common reasons projects stall has nothing to do with interconnection queues, tariffs, or labor shortages. Instead, roadblocks emerge at town …
Trinasolar and Spear Commercial Complete Unique 1.3 MW Rooftop and Carport Solar Installation for Drake Plastics
Vertex N modules power branded, high-performance C&I solar carport and rooftop system, offsetting new manufacturing facility’s energy use by 30% FREMONT, Calif. — August 11, 2026 — Trinasolar, a global leader in smart PV and energy solutions, supplied its Vertex N PV modules for a 1.3 MW rooftop and carport solar PV system at Drake …
Sun, Soil and Solar: How Agrivoltaics Solves Land-Use Issues and Creates Opportunities for C&I Solar EPCs
Landowners across the country have faced a version of the same question: Is this land better used for agricultural operations, for solar PV generation, or for agrivoltaics? Often, the question leads to pushback against solar development, with farmers, operators, and whole communities convinced solar installations mean sacrificing prime farming acreage. However, new data reveals a …
Inside the Wakefield Energy Park: What a Working Municipal Microgrid Tells Us About the Benefits of Energy Storage
The American Public Power Association (APPA) National Conference took place in Boston, Massachusetts, from June 26 to July 1, 2026. It featured over 40 educational sessions focusing on grid modernization, energy transition policies, utility-scale storage, and microgrid energy storage integration. It’s one thing to hear about an energy project at a conference — quite another …
Selling the Long-Term Value of Residential Solar in 2026 and Beyond
For years, “Save 30 percent with the ITC” was instrumental in the residential solar sales pitch — a value hook that helped land the sale. With the loss of the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for homeowners at the end of 2025, that closer is gone. But the case for solar hasn’t gotten weaker. The value …
