As summer winds down, days are getting shorter, and in turn, solar modules are producing less and less energy. If you’ve taken some needed vacation during the past few months, you may have missed some big stories coming out of GTM Research.  

Here are six of GTM Research's most important storylines of this summer.

Who Finances Residential Solar in 2014?

In this article, solar analyst Nicole Litvak maps the residential finance landscape in the United States. Vendors are broken down into four segments: vertically integrated financiers, partner model financiers, semi-integrated financiers, and semi-integrated installers.

FIGURE: Residential Solar Financing Landscape

Source: U.S. Residential Solar Financing, 2014-2018

Here’s Where Solar, Storage and Microgrids Are Starting to Take Hold in the U.S.

Tapping into GTM Research reports, GTM Editor Stephen Lacey provides a geographic view of the grid edge across the United States.
 

FIGURE: U.S. Microgrid Deployments, 2014


Source: North American Microgrids 2014

Two Charts That Illustrate the Sophistication of Today’s PV Suppliers

In this popular piece, lead upstream analyst Shyam Mehta dives into data from the PV Pulse to highlight varying strategies among PV suppliers. 

Source: GTM Research PV Pulse

GTM Research and PV Evolution Labs Identify Solar Module Quality Leaders

In the first study of its kind, GTM Research pits module manufacturers against one another in a series of reliability tests including extended thermal cycling, damp heat, humidity-freeze, dynamic mechanical load, and potential induced degradation for positively and negatively biased modules.

FIGURE: Sample Scorecard Results

Source: PV Module Reliability Scorecard 2014

Chinese Module Prices in U.S. to Rise to Highest Levels Since Q2 2012

In the latest edition of the Global PV Pricing Outlook report, it’s noted that quotes for Chinese modules have increased from 70 cents in the first half of the year to 78 cents per watt in August. Learn what's causing the uptick in prices in this article.

Source: Global PV Pricing Outlook, Q3 2014

6 Trends That Illustrate the Impact of the U.S.-China Trade Case on the Solar Market

The trade case is ongoing, but the solar market is already feeling the impact. Using data from a comprehensive new report, PV Pulse, and the PV Leaderboard, Shyam Mehta provides what one commenter called a "highly informative post with clear illustrations and precise statistics."


Source: GTM Research PV Pulse

Read all of the GTM Research-related articles here.

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