Solar PV on U.S. Houses of Worship: Overview of Market Activity and Trends

Rooftop solar photovoltaic systems on houses of worship can provide unique community benefits and can raise local awareness and acceptance of solar energy. Recognizing that potential, a stakeholder team selected under DOE’s Solar Energy Innovation Network is working to develop a scalable model for recruiting and installing solar PV on houses of worship in underserved communities. Berkeley Lab is providing analytical support to this stakeholder team through several work products, including this report, which provides a data-oriented overview of market activity and trends related to solar PV installations on U.S. houses of worship (HoW).

Drawing on Berkeley Lab’s project-level dataset of U.S. solar PV installations, the report describes:

• market size and growth trends for PV on HoW
• demographic characteristics of the communities in which HoW with PV are located, including income, race and ethnicity, and educational levels
• key characteristics of the PV systems installed on HoW, including system size, installed costs, prevalence of third-party ownership, and pairing with storage
• characteristics of the installer network servicing PV installations on HoW

The purpose of the market overview is to inform business development and policy-making efforts aimed at supporting solar adoption by HoW.