US solar installs to get 40% boost on climate law, industry says

President Joe Biden’s sweeping climate legislation is expected to boost US solar installation, but lingering bottlenecks in the global supply chain and trade issues mean most gains won’t be realized until 2024.

Clean-energy developers are forecast to install more than 215 gigawatts of solar panels during the next five years, according to a report published Thursday from the Solar Energy Industries Association and Wood Mackenzie. That’s 40% more than the Washington-based trade group expected without the Inflation Reduction Act, the climate-friendly bill signed into law last month.

Still, the industry remains hampered by challenges producing and delivering panels that are expected to remain through next year. That will be exacerbated by trade issues, notably the US dispute with China over human rights issues that has led to restrictions on imports. SEIA expects the new legislation to increase installations by only 100 megawatts this year, according to the report.

“The Inflation Reduction Act is going to transform America’s energy economy, and the forecasts show a wave of clean energy and manufacturing investments,” SEIA Chief Executive Officer Abigail Ross Harper said in a statement.