SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SunRun, the nation’s leading home solar company, and PV Solar Report, an authority on California solar market data, today announced California’s fastest-growing solar cities. These cities added more home solar systems in 2011 than their counterparts throughout the state and show solar growth is expanding to new regions. The list complements the release of the Q4 and Year End solar sales and installation reports from PV Solar Report.
While steady solar growth continues in traditional solar hot beds like San Jose, new solar leaders like Hemet and Apple Valley indicate increasing solar adoption on a broader geographic scale. In addition, the majority of homeowners in these cities chose to go solar without buying the panels, known as solar power service. The fastest-growing solar cities list is based on the California Solar Initiative's (CSI) database of residential rebate reservations for calendar year 2011.* Rankings are as follows:
| 1) San Jose |
| 2) Bakersfield |
| 3) Simi Valley |
| 4) Lancaster |
| 5) Fresno |
| 6) Corona |
| 7) Murrieta |
| 8) Rocklin |
| 9) Hemet |
| 10) Apple Valley |
“We thought it was important to not just look at which cities have the most solar installations, but also those that are growing the fastest,” said Stephen Torres, founder and managing director of PV Solar Report. “While Apple Valley may not have the most solar in the state, its solar installation numbers grew by almost 70 percent in 2011.”
PV Solar Report's analyses also show a tremendous increase in homeowners who chose solar power service over purchasing the panels. For example, top city San Jose had 648 homeowners choose solar service in 2011 versus 312 opting for panel purchase. In December 2011 solar power service was over 70% of the home solar market. SunRun invented this model for residential solar in 2007 and remains the market leader in California with twice the market share of the next largest provider.
"The cost of solar is coming down, which makes it more affordable for families in a more diverse range of cities," said SunRun President and Co-founder Lynn Jurich. "At SunRun we’ve also seen solar expand to more median income communities because our service allows homeowners to make the switch for zero or very little money upfront, and they lock in a low rate for clean electricity.”
SunRun now installs over $1.5 million in solar every day, completing one rooftop installation every 11 minutes of the business day by letting American families switch to solar without spending $30,000 or more to buy panels. SunRun owns, insures and maintains the solar panels and installs them on a homeowner's roof. Families pay a low monthly rate for clean energy, fixing their energy costs for 20 years.
For more information on SunRun visit www.sunrunhome.com. For a more comprehensive list of the fastest-growing cities and information on Q4 and Year End reports from PV Solar Report click here.
*The CSI database includes data from the California utilities SDG&E, PG&E and SCE.
About SunRun
SunRun is the nation's leading residential solar company and its mission is to become the nation's largest energy provider. The company's Total Solar product is the smart and affordable choice for homeowners who want a clean alternative to their utility. SunRun offers solar power service, similar to a lease, allowing homeowners to upgrade their home to solar for as little as $0 upfront and simply pay monthly for solar electricity. More than 18,000 homeowners have chosen SunRun across Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Pennsylvania. SunRun partners with over 25 leading local solar installers, who together employ more than 3,000 green-collar workers. SunRun has raised financing for more than $800 million in solar systems from investors including U.S. Bancorp, and $85 million in venture capital from Accel Partners, Foundation Capital and Sequoia Capital. For more information, please visit: www.sunrunhome.com.
About PV Solar Report
PV Solar Report is the leading authority on California solar market data with the mission of providing relevant, timely and succinct information to busy solar professionals. PV Solar Report publishes a daily digest for busy solar professionals, in-depth quarterly reports of the California residential solar market, and custom reports for solar company clients. PV Solar Report makes it easy for industry professionals to stay on top of the dynamic solar industry. For more information visit: www.pvsolarreport.com