Report: California Leads in Urban Solar Potential

ReWire

News > ReWire > Solar > Photovoltaic (PV) > Report: California Leads in Urban Solar Potential

Solar | Photovoltaic (PV)

Report: California Leads in Urban Solar Potential

by Chris Clarke

July 30, 2012 3:33 PM

Photovoltaic cells up close | Photo: Jeremy Levine Designs/Flickr/Creative Commons License

A July report by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) puts California in the lead among U.S. states when it comes to how much power we could be generating on our rooftops and in our cities.

The report, "U.S. Renewable Energy Technical Potentials: A GIS-Based Analysis," assesses California's rooftop solar generation potential at a stunning 76 gigawatts of capacity, almost twice the state's typical power demand on a peak day, and 16 gigawatts more than the state in the number two slot, Texas.

Story Continues Below

Support KCET

UCLA Report: Lots of L.A. County Rooftops Ideal for Solar Power

Explained: Understanding PV and Solar Thermal

Become an Expert: Watts and Watt-Hours, Kilo and Mega

If built out, the report says, California could generate 106 terawatt-hours of power each year on its rooftops, an eighth of the U.S.'s total rooftop solar potential output. A terawatt-hour is equal to a million kilowatt-hours, and 106 terawatt-hours of power would be sufficient to power the entire state of California for five months.

California comes in second to Texas, according to NREL, in potential for development of utility-scale solar photovoltaics in urban settings, which the NREL defines as large-scale solar inside urban boundaries. The Lone Star State could potentially build 154 gigawatts of generating capacity, compared to California's potential 111 gigawatts. Not that we should feel like slouches in the urban utility-scale realm: that 111 gigawatts of capacity would generate 246 terawatt-hours of power, more than 95% of the state's current consumption.

We don't come out as well in the rural utility-scale PV category, lagging in total output potential behind such solar paradises as South Dakota and Kansas. And we come in fifth in potential for concentrating solar, behind Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado.

As regards that power consumption, incidentally, that's another area where California comes in second to Texas according to NREL. California consumes 258,525 gigawatt-hours of power each year, and Texas consumes almost 100,000 gigawatt-hours more than that at 358,458.

Of course, without energy storage solar alone can't power California: the sun goes down every day and solar power facilities stop producing power. But the report is an indication that photovoltaic development in the built environment is the solar arena in which California offers the most potential, and suggests that we might adopt that route as a state priority.

ReWire is dedicated to covering renewable energy in California. Keep in touch by liking us on Facebook, and help shape our editorial direction by taking this quick survey here.

About the Author

Chris Clarke is a natural history writer and environmental journalist currently at work on a book about the Joshua tree. He lives in Joshua Tree. MORE

Follow @canislatrans

Support for KCET.org provided by:

News and analysis about renewable energy in California. Blog host Chris Clarke is an environmental writer of two decades standing. He currently lives in Joshua Tree and can be contacted at: rewire@kcet.org.

Wind Power
PV and Solar Thermal
Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROEI)
Watts and Watt-Hours, Kilo and Mega
'Enough To Power X Thousand Homes'
The Grid
Distributed Generation
Conservation and 'Negawatts'
Grid Storage
PACE Loans, Feed In Tariffs and Net Metering
Base Load and Peaking Power
Capacity Factor
Renewable Portfolio Standards
Biomass
Transportation and Renewable Energy
Geothermal

Keep in touch with renewable energy and more environmental issues by signing up for our newsletter.

Subscribe to our mailing list