US Solar Panel Shipments Reach New Record in 2022 Amid Growing Solar Capacity

By IndraStra Global News Team

Cover Image Attribute: Image by Leopictures from Pixabay

The United States witnessed a remarkable surge in solar photovoltaic (PV) panel shipments during 2022, registering a 10% increase from the previous year, setting a fresh annual record of 31.7 million peak kilowatts (kWp), according to the latest data released. This notable uptick in solar panel shipments is in direct correlation with the continuous expansion of solar capacity across the country.
The connection between solar panel shipments and domestic solar capacity expansion is closely linked, often characterized by the time lag between the shipment of panels and their subsequent installation. The data encompass all aspects of U.S. solar panel shipments, encompassing imports, exports, and domestically produced panels that are sent to various destinations. The report underlines that imports from Asia constituted about 88% of the U.S. solar panel shipments in 2022.

Chart Attribute: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Annual Photovoltaic Module Shipments Report
Over the past decade, the U.S. has witnessed an unprecedented boom in solar capacity, with growth extending to both large-scale utility solar farms, defined as having a capacity of one megawatt or more, and small-scale solar installations. Notably, a significant portion of the small-scale solar sector is attributed to residential rooftop installations.
In a detailed breakdown, the U.S. saw the addition of 10.9 gigawatts (GW) of new utility-scale solar capacity in 2022, marking the second-largest annual increase after the record-breaking addition of 13.5 GW in 2021, as reported in the Annual Electric Generator Report. Simultaneously, small-scale solar capacity additions reached a new milestone, adding 6.4 GW in 2022, which stands as an annual record, surpassing the 2021 figure of 5.5 GW by 17%.
However, a number of solar projects slated for launch in 2022 faced delays or cancellations due to disruptions in the solar panel supply chain. These challenges were attributed to solar panels being held up at the U.S. border as the U.S. Customs and Border Protection began enforcing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). The UFLPA specifically targets goods manufactured using forced labor in China's Xinjiang province, a region responsible for nearly half of the global polysilicon production—a key component of solar panels. Eventually, Customs released the detained panels after importers demonstrated compliance with the UFLPA, but the delays impacted the timelines of several solar projects.
The remarkable growth in solar capacity has been bolstered by a significant reduction in solar panel costs since 2010, which has fueled expansion both in the U.S. and on a global scale. Reflecting this trend, the average value of U.S. solar panel shipments, indicative of the price, has dwindled from $1.96/kWp in 2010 to $0.39/kWp in 2022. However, despite this consistent trend, the average value of solar panel shipments saw a 15% uptick from 2021. This rise can be attributed to the backdrop of increasing inflation, elevated material and shipping costs, and ongoing challenges within the supply chain sector.

Chart Attribute: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Annual Photovoltaic Module Shipments Report
Note: In their reports on solar photovoltaic module shipments, the EIA employed peak kilowatts as the chosen measurement unit. Peak watts, a unit utilized by manufacturers, denote the direct current output that a photovoltaic module is projected to generate under standard testing circumstances, typically set at 1,000 watts per square meter of sunlight exposure and a temperature of 25 degrees Celsius.

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