Big Business Has Doubled Down on Solar and Battery Storage

Although you might not know it from the political rhetoric about drilling and fossil fuels, many of the biggest U.S. companies have put huge investments into renewable energy.

A new report from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) finds that despite various roadblocks, major corporations in 2023 continued to dump vast amounts of capital into renewable energy. You may have a love-hate feeling about some of these firms (and their CEOs), but their impact on the solar industry shouldn’t be underestimated. For example, Amazon led the pack:

Amazon was the #1 corporation for 2023 growth, installing nearly 3 GW in 2023 and more than doubling its total solar portfolio. In what was a record year for utility-scale deployment in the broader solar market, corporate PPAs for utility-scale solar dominated the corporate segment, representing over 95% of annual corporate procurement. The top eight companies for 2023 capacity additions brought online 100 MW or more each, representing larger volumes than many states installed in that year.

The 2024 Solar Means Business report found that the driving force behind this embrace of cleaner technology is the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act. 

Buyers cited the long-term security of the ITC extension and the upside of the ITC adders as being tailwinds for further development in new markets, particularly in an environment where development costs have been on the rise.

According to the researchers about 18 percent of total solar installs in the U.S. came from corporate entities.

Top 25 Companies by Solar Capacity

The researchers note that these rankings have shifted around rapidly. For example, Google jumped form 22^nd in 2022 to 3^rd in 2023, as it switched its renewable investments from wind power to solar.

Target corporation has installed solar on almost 600 roofs nationwide, including this distribution center.

What impact, if any, will the new Trump administration have on the “full speed ahead” solar adoption taking place at the corporate level? It’s not yet clear, but new roadlocks are certainly being considered, with threats of tariffs on Chinese panels and batteries, rhetorical threats that the new administration will try to claw back some of the funding from the ITC.

The reality is, however, that these companies see solar as a good investment in uncertain times:

“Expectations of increased electricity demand and other inflationary pressures have companies looking for ways to secure affordable energy supplies. Creating resilience and price certainty for themselves through on-site generation or locked in energy procurement drives down risk creating more long-term security and stability.”