The US Solar Market Insight report, published by the Solar Energy Industries Association and the WoodMac Power & Renewables, shows that the US residential solar market The third quarter hit a record high, with rooftop photovoltaic power generation capacity reaching 712 MW.

Key information revealed by the report includes:

* The United States installed 2.6 GW dc of solar energy in the third quarter, a year-on-year increase of 45%;

* The United States added a new record of 712 MW of residential solar power in the last quarter;

* California has increased residential photovoltaic power generation capacity by nearly 300 MW;

* The contracted utility photovoltaic pipeline reached a record 45.5 GWdc; and

* The installed solar capacity in the United States will more than double in the next five years.

California has new growth drivers:

Wood Mackenzie senior solar analyst Austin Perea said California, which has been at the forefront of solar development, installed a record 300 MW of residential solar in the last quarter, although "the growth driver has shifted." Perea said that it was "new solar demand" and "consumer interest in solar + storage solutions due to public safety power outages" driving this record-breaking growth.

According to Wood McKenzie, policy reforms continue to hamper the development of key non-residential markets in California, Massachusetts, and Minnesota. Its report states that positive policy developments in New York, Maryland, Maine, and New Jersey will drive non-residential solar development in the coming years.

The US solar market increased the amount of solar power generation by 2.6 GW in the third quarter, bringing the nation ’s solar power generation capacity to 71.3 GW. The increase in residential installations helped the US market achieve a year-on-year growth rate of 45% and pushed 15 states to achieve the best quarterly residential photovoltaic performance ever.