Reversal of U.S. Bifacial Solar Tariff Exemption Will Bite, But Growth Expected to Continue

The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) in early October abruptly and unexpectedly reversed its decision to exempt bifacial solar modules from global import tariffs, throwing up another obstacle to solar energy growth and development in the U.S. Bifacial solar modules only account for a small share of U.S. sales at present, but that has been growing fast. Able to convert sunlight into electricity from both sides, bifacial solar panels’ energy conversion efficiency can be 20% higher than conventional silicon solar modules, according to industry figures. That’s made them popular with large-scale project developers, as well as at sites where space comes at a premium.

Fig. 42: Worldwide market shares for bifacial cell technology. Source: International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV)

“After evaluating newly available information...demonstrating that global production of bifacial solar panels is increasing, that the exclusion will likely result in significant increases in imports of bifacial solar panels, and that such panels likely will compete with domestically produced monofacial and bifacial CSPV products in the U.S. market, the U.S. Trade Representative has determined, after consultation with the Secretaries of Commerce and Energy, that maintaining the exclusion will undermine the objectives of the safeguard measure,” according to USTR’s announcement.

A snapshot of Rhode Island’s current renewable energy ambitions provides some context to the state’s wider dynamics alongside these new projects. In January 2020 Governor Gina Raimondo set down the goal via an Executive Order 20-01 to see renewable energy sources meet 100% of the state’s electricity demand by 2030.

A sudden reversal

The USTR on June 13 published a notice granting certain requests for exclusions and excluding the products at issue from the safeguard measure’s application. Bifacial solar panels made solely of bifacial solar cells were among those granted exemptions.Investors briefly drove up the share prices of U.S.-based manufacturers of high-efficiency solar panels First Solar and Sunpower upon the announcement of the exemption reversal, business news outlets reported. Shares of their Chinese counterparts’ Canadian Solar and Jinko Solar fell. “We’re obviously disappointed by USTR’s decision to revoke the bifacial panel exemption. USTR granted the exemption only four months ago, and only after a year-long process that included notice and comment and inter-agency review. In an extraordinary and unprecedented turn of events, the exemption was quickly rescinded without any opportunity for public notice and comment. This is unnecessarily squeezing the supply of panels in the United States, thereby inflating prices for consumers. In its rush to judgement, USTR missed an opportunity to address the significant shortage of domestic solar panels and its decision will slow the growth of an American economic engine. We look forward to making our case during the pending midterm review,” Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the U.S. Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), said in a statement.

Industry players were looking forward to a healthy pick-up in sales and deployment of bifacial solar panels in the wake of the tariff exemption’s announcement. That was due to several factors, California’s solar homes mandate, rising investments in solar and renewable energy on the part of U.S. corporations, and cities and states announcing more ambitious renewable energy and climate change goals among them. The Sec. 201 import duty exemption for bifacial solar cells and modules “represents one of the best solutions yet for an industry that’s been dealing with tariffs since January 2018, and we hope it will help level the playing field for U.S. manufacturers. SEIA has been lobbying diligently for exclusions for bifacial modules, so we’re pleased with this ruling,” veteran industry executive Gary Liardon said in an interview at the time.

Healthy growth expected nonetheless

“We were not expecting this [the exemption’s reversal] either. The decision came suddenly,” Lux Research Research Associate Patricia Seoane da SilvaSolar Magazine Interviewee Avatar told Solar Magazine.

Still, all things considered, the situation is not that negative. We still believe that bifacial solar sales on the whole are going to take off. Yes, we could see the effects pushing U.S. sales downward, but the tariffs will be lowered 5% per year and phased out in coming years.

All things considered, da Silva and Lux see a rising global market trend regarding demand for bifacial solar panels. “Nowadays it’s most polycrystalline silicon [panels being deployed],” da Silva said in an interview. She also pointed out that manufacturers are making greater use of n-type doping (as opposed to the more commonly used p-type doping), which results in higher efficiency PV cells and modules. Lux and other industry analysts foresee healthy growth in sales and installations of bifacial solar panels worldwide despite reversal of the U.S. import tariff exemption. “By 2028, expectations are that bifacial solar panels will account for around 40% of the market,” she highlighted.

Lumos Solar GSX bifacial modules

More important than the U.S. import tariff being reimposed is the lack of standardization for bifacial solar modules , according to da Silva.

We don’t believe the main interest here is in the U.S. The main issue with bifacial solar is that there are no standards right now—no standardization of energy prediction tools, no standardized testing or certification of performance. There are no tools to accurately predict power output.

To be sure, bifacial solar cell and module metrics are based priced on a variety of variable factors, she continued. Absorption [of solar energy] takes place on both sides of the panel, which leads to more in the way of differences between bifacial and conventional solar cells and modules when it comes to site location, da Silva pointed out. Solar PV panel output gains from reflected ground light, measured by albedo, in locations such as Canada that get a lot of snow, are much different than in other locations where the albedo effect is lower, the Netherlands, for instance, according to da Silva. “Studies out there have shown up to 21% gains with bifacial on average, some up to 25%. We believe between 5%–15% is safe bet, but it’s very difficult to say without proper tools or measurement standards.” Then there are gains to be had by manufacturers that could add momentum to the falling trend in the cost of solar energy given sufficient increases in bifacial solar module use and scaling up of manufacturing capacity to reach sufficient economies of scale, industry analysts point out.

US Import Duty Exemption Adds Fuel to Anticipated Surge in High-Efficiency Bifacial Solar PV

The US market for high-efficiency, bifacial solar panels is poised to surge higher over the course of the next 12 months, thanks to being granted an exemption from Section 201 import duties, which now stand at 30% , industry players and analysts say. The latest US tariff on global imports of solar photovoltaic (PV) cells and panels extends over a four-year period and drops 5% annually, to 15% in 2021. Able to absorb solar energy and produce electricity from both their front and back sides, bifacial solar, also known as PERC (Passive Emitter Rear Cell), panels have been shown to be as much as 27% more efficient than conventional silicon PV panels. They’re more expensive as a result, but wiping out the import duty is going to give them a big advantage in the marketplace.

That said, bifacial panels only account for around 1–2% of US solar PV installations. That’s poised to change rather quickly and dramatically due to the confluence of a number of factors, California’s solar homes mandate, as well as the Sec. 201 import tariff exemption, prominent among them, Gary LiardonSolar Magazine Interviewee Avatar, a US Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) director, president and COO of the consumer division at PetersenDean Roofing & Solar, told Solar Magazine.

“One of the best solutions” to an industry being plagued by import duties

The Sec. 201 import duty exemption for bifacial solar cells and modules “represents one of the best solutions yet for an industry that’s been dealing with tariffs since January 2018, and we hope it will help level the playing field for U.S. manufacturers. SEIA has been lobbying diligently for exclusions for bifacial modules, so we’re pleased with this ruling,” Liardon said in an interview.

While the number of bifacial panels being used in the United States is relatively small, we expect installations to ramp up quickly, especially with the exclusion and because it’s such an effective and efficient technology.

SEIA began carrying out political lobbying efforts advocating for solar panel import duty exemptions almost immediately after the first Sec. 201 tariffs were imposed by the US Trade Representative and President Barack Obama back in 2012–2013. That continues in the present with SEIA organizing and coordinating meetings and informational sessions between politicians and its industry members to inform them about the toll the import duties are taking on the US solar industry and jobs, Liardon explained.

Industry players were looking forward to a healthy pick-up in sales and deployment of bifacial solar panels in the wake of the tariff exemption’s announcement. That was due to several factors, California’s solar homes mandate, rising investments in solar and renewable energy on the part of U.S. corporations, and cities and states announcing more ambitious renewable energy and climate change goals among them. The Sec. 201 import duty exemption for bifacial solar cells and modules “represents one of the best solutions yet for an industry that’s been dealing with tariffs since January 2018, and we hope it will help level the playing field for U.S. manufacturers. SEIA has been lobbying diligently for exclusions for bifacial modules, so we’re pleased with this ruling,” veteran industry executive Gary Liardon said in an interview at the time.

SEIA began carrying out political lobbying efforts advocating for solar panel import duty exemptions almost immediately after the first Sec. 201 tariffs were imposed by the US Trade Representative and President Barack Obama back in 2012–2013. That continues in the present with SEIA organizing and coordinating meetings and informational sessions between politicians and its industry members to inform them about the toll the import duties are taking on the US solar industry and jobs, Liardon explained.

GTM Research estimates the proposed tariffs could reduce U.S. solar installations by 9 to 40 percent, depending on the level of the tariff. The Trump administration has sole discretion over the final tariff imposed. (via Scientific American) Credit: Greentech Media, GTM Research | Click here to view the full-size chart.

The US Trade Representative reviews unfair trade petitions from US businesses, reviews and investigates them and either recommends or doesn’t recommend the president institute punitive import duties. “At the end of the day, that power exists by executive order, but there’s a balance there, maybe not as much today as previously, but Congress does have an influence,” Liardon said. Solar energy today is as much to do with simple economics as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, countering climate change or improving human and environment health and quality, according to Liardon. “Republicans and conservatives are willing to listen, and they realize supporting solar energy is the right thing to do economically, as well as environmentally. It’s a fiscally responsible decision to make, which means it has a better chance and is more likely to have an effect at the executive level. Bipartisan support has definitely been growing. That’s a big difference as compared to five or six years ago,” Liardon said.

California solar homes mandate, production increases add momentum to market growth prospects

The Sec. 201 import tariffs have been taking a heavy toll on development of a lot of bifacial solar projects, according to Liardon. “These are high-efficiency panels essentially sandwiched back to back, with a reflective, back substrate. A 25% jump in energy conversion efficiency is substantial—what would be a module capable of producing 300 watts (W) jumps up to 350–360W of output...Because of that efficiency gain, the higher cost of bifacial modules will be offset by the tariff exemption, which will make them cost-effective and competitive even against conventional solar panels,” Liardon said.

In addition to the Sec. 201 import duty exemption, leading solar PV manufacturers have been ramping up bifacial PV cell and panel production capacity in bids to differentiate themselves in the marketplace and produce PV panels better suited to locations where land or rooftop availability is limited and prices high, Liardon pointed out. Price drops are expected as a result, adding to bifacial panels’ market competitiveness and growth in market demand. Furthermore, Liardon highlighted that California’s solar energy mandate for new residential construction (solar homes mandate) is set to go into effect January 1. The solar homes mandate requires all new homes built in California to be outfitted with solar energy systems. That’s going to give the Golden State’s solar energy market a big boost and open up a very large, new, retail market for now more competitive bifacial solar panels and systems, Liardon pointed out.

Import tariff exemption, California solar homes mandate make for a huge market opportunity

Up until now, a large majority of bifacial PV panel sales and system installations have been limited to utility-scale and large commercial-industrial (C&I) solar projects, Liardon explained .

In addition to the availability of land and rooftop space, from a manufacturing standpoint, the bulk of bifacial solar installations historically have been earmarked for large-scale projects. There hasn’t been a big push into the retail market. —Liardon said.

That’s poised to change dramatically as a result of the confluence of California’s solar homes mandate going into effect, manufacturing capacity growth and bifacial panel imports being exempt from Sec. 201 import tariffs, he continued. Increasing land costs in areas such as Northern California are leading home builders and architects to design and build higher density housing, Liardon pointed out. Furthermore, “residential rooftops are being designed to capture the output of higher efficiency bifacial panels,” he said. PetersenDean specializes in new residential and commercial construction. Jim Petersen founded the Fremont, California-based company in 1984. To date, PetersenDean has installed more than a million roofs, employs 3,000 workers and operates in eight states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, Oklahoma and Texas, according to the company.

PetersenDean Roofing & Solar is primarily a roofing company, the largest privately-held one in the US, according to management, but it’s also one of the top two or three rooftop solar installers in the country, Liardon pointed out. “California’s mandate will have a significant impact on our operations and overall annual business. We’re currently installing just under 50% of new roofs in California. Of all of those houses, we install solar on around 10 percent. That will be 100% come January 2020,” Liardon said.

The emergence of an entirely new solar market realm

Furthermore, bifacial modules will be “a much more viable play” for single-family homes, as well as multi-family housing and C&I projects, according to Liardon. “There’s an entirely different need emerging in California, particularly within the residential realm.” “These [bifacial] panels are particularly advantageous for small rooftops and high-density areas and that’s going to change the game and open up markets from a solar energy productivity standpoint,” he said. Liardon said bifacial PV panels’ market share in California could surge from 1–2% to the double digits, as high as 15–20%, over the next 12 months. “It doesn’t take long for demand [for particular technologies] to shift and market shares to change quickly,” he said. “We think there’s going to be a significant bump higher over the next 12 months depending on the pace [manufacturing] capacity ramps up, but bifacial panel market share could approach 20% within a year. A large part of that is connected to California’s mandate and limited rooftop and land availability.” Annual new single-family home starts in California are in the 80,000–90,000 range at present. Some 12,000–15,000 are outfitted with solar energy systems, Liardon pointed out.

There are around 140,000 single-family home solar systems installed in California right now, either retrofit or new home installations. The [solar homes] mandate applies to new construction, so the number of single-family residential solar installs in California is going to jump from 140,000–150,000 up to 240,000–250,000 starting in 2020.

“Obviously, the impacts of this mandate, or tariffs of any kind, make for a difficult challenge for all—builders, owners, project developers, equipment suppliers, etc.—particularly given limited rooftop space in high-density markets. There are lots of areas where [property] lots are small and rooftop space is limited, which is going to make it difficult to install solar. That’s why this exemption for high-efficiency, bifacial solar modules is such a big win,” Liardon concluded.

A Newly Released Climate Action Plan Could Unleash Ireland’s Solar Energy Generation Potential Through Making Rooftop Solar More Attractive

A radical climate action plan by the Irish Government, published earlier this month, includes commitments to create a mechanism for solar micro-generators to sell electricity back to the grid. This is long overdue in Ireland could create a huge increase in the proportion of photovoltaic power generated in the country.

Greenfields, ancient castles and shamrocks are what many people picture when they think of the island of Ireland. Not often imagined is the country’s tremendous over-reliance on fossil fuels and poor climate record. However, due to a new government initiative, this may soon change. Future images of Ireland’s mostly rural landscape might also feature occasional photovoltaic panels; both in solar farms as well as on private rooftops and working farms. While the Irish weather might be described as, quite often, “cloudy”, parts of Ireland still manage to receive over 351,794 Joules/cm² of solar radiation per year, according to the country’s meteorological service. This is comparable to other countries in Northern Europe with extensive solar power generation industries. While not as productive as other more southern parts of Europe this still makes solar PV electricity generation in Ireland easily viable.

Unused Solar Potential

Even with a favourable solar irradiation profile, and great wind conditions for turbines, Ireland needs to up its game in terms of renewable energy as soon as possible. In spite of its green image, Ireland was recently ranked the worst country in Europe for climate action in the European Climate Change Performance Index. As a member of the European Union, Ireland is also tied to an EU wide target of 16 percent renewable energy generation by 2022. With this target in mind, the country currently generates only around 9 percent of its electricity from renewables according to the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, the SEAI. By not meeting its targets, Ireland may be subject to potential penalties of up to 1 million euro per day as it will be forced by EU legislation to buy renewable energy credits from other nations with surpluses after 2020. Without drastic action, the cost of underperforming in renewable power generation is set to become a high one for Ireland’s taxpayers.

Growing Climate Consciousness

Even in terms of its own existing national climate policy, which states a goal of generating one-third of all energy from renewable sources by 2030, Ireland is also severely lagging behind where it should. The public’s discontent with their nation’s performance on this issue has been shown by the political resurgence of the (climate policy focused) Green Party, in Ireland. Huge gains in vote share during the recent European and local elections were garnered by Green Party candidates across the country. Prompted by Green politicians, Ireland also became the second country in the world to declare a climate emergency last month. A large part of Ireland’s existing renewable energy production has so far been sourced from onshore wind. Power generated from onshore wind farms accounted for the vast majority of the 9% share of power generation from renewables in the country last year. However, the solar energy market share is increasing rapidly. Between 2017 and 2018 the amount of electricity generated by solar power in Ireland increased three fold. Unfortunately, this is from an extremely low base and still amounts to only 0.3% of Ireland’s annual energy generation during this period. This might be about to change. If all of the solar farms which have been granted planning permission are developed as planned, the percentage of energy generated by solar could jump to 5% of all electricity generated in Ireland by 2022 according to the Irish Solar Energy Association.

Even with many solar farm developments already approved (85 have so far achieved development permission across the country), large solar projects have faced great difficulty in going from the planning to development stage so far in Ireland. Lack of clear guidelines and information combined with community opposition has led to several high profile solar farm planning objections and huge developments such as this one in County Kildare Ireland being rejected by planners.

A New Plan

A big part of the solution to Ireland’s energy problem could now be solar PV microgeneration. The government’s climate action plan, launched last week, contains a commitment to “change the electricity market rules in early 2020 in order to enable micro-generated electricity to be sold to the grid.” This action is also set to “include provision for a feed-in tariff for microgeneration to be set at least at the wholesale price point”. Strong policy like this has the potential to be a game changer for solar power generation in Ireland. With a rumoured tariff of 19 cent per killowatt hour the change in policy will enable rooftop PV producers to sell their excess electricity back to the grid instead of “donating” it free of cost as is the current situation. Combined with generous current and proposed government grants for panel installation (up to 50% of the cost) on existing and new housing developments, it is hoped that this measure will spark a boom in microgeneration of power across the country. Coupled with a proposed carbon tax of over 80 euro per tonne, the actions within the new plan should help create market conditions far more favourable to renewable energy microgeneration than is currently the case.

Too Little Too Late?

This kind of plan is long overdue in Ireland. In spite of much its landmass having similar solar generation potential to other parts of northern Europe such as Germany (where solar power makes up 7% of all energy generated) and Northern France, Ireland has been extremely slow on the uptake. This deficiency has been blamed on a lack of state policy, scattered grant schemes and no political motivation for renewable energy schemes. Through the ballot box, the Irish people are clearly demanding action on further integration of renewables. With a coherent state plan now finalised and clear actions ready to be put in place, it will soon be seen whether effective measures can be brought in before stringent EU penalties and rising public discontent begin to seriously bite.

California solar homes mandate, production increases add momentum to market growth prospects

The Sec. 201 import tariffs have been taking a heavy toll on development of a lot of bifacial solar projects, according to Liardon. “These are high-efficiency panels essentially sandwiched back to back, with a reflective, back substrate. A 25% jump in energy conversion efficiency is substantial—what would be a module capable of producing 300 watts (W) jumps up to 350–360W of output...Because of that efficiency gain, the higher cost of bifacial modules will be offset by the tariff exemption, which will make them cost-effective and competitive even against conventional solar panels,” Liardon said.

In addition to the Sec. 201 import duty exemption, leading solar PV manufacturers have been ramping up bifacial PV cell and panel production capacity in bids to differentiate themselves in the marketplace and produce PV panels better suited to locations where land or rooftop availability is limited and prices high, Liardon pointed out. Price drops are expected as a result, adding to bifacial panels’ market competitiveness and growth in market demand. Furthermore, Liardon highlighted that California’s solar energy mandate for new residential construction (solar homes mandate) is set to go into effect January 1. The solar homes mandate requires all new homes built in California to be outfitted with solar energy systems. That’s going to give the Golden State’s solar energy market a big boost and open up a very large, new, retail market for now more competitive bifacial solar panels and systems, Liardon pointed out.

Import tariff exemption, California solar homes mandate make for a huge market opportunity

Up until now, a large majority of bifacial PV panel sales and system installations have been limited to utility-scale and large commercial-industrial (C&I) solar projects, Liardon explained .

In addition to the availability of land and rooftop space, from a manufacturing standpoint, the bulk of bifacial solar installations historically have been earmarked for large-scale projects. There hasn’t been a big push into the retail market. —Liardon said.

That’s poised to change dramatically as a result of the confluence of California’s solar homes mandate going into effect, manufacturing capacity growth and bifacial panel imports being exempt from Sec. 201 import tariffs, he continued. Increasing land costs in areas such as Northern California are leading home builders and architects to design and build higher density housing, Liardon pointed out. Furthermore, “residential rooftops are being designed to capture the output of higher efficiency bifacial panels,” he said. PetersenDean specializes in new residential and commercial construction. Jim Petersen founded the Fremont, California-based company in 1984. To date, PetersenDean has installed more than a million roofs, employs 3,000 workers and operates in eight states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, Oklahoma and Texas, according to the company.

PetersenDean Roofing & Solar is primarily a roofing company, the largest privately-held one in the US, according to management, but it’s also one of the top two or three rooftop solar installers in the country, Liardon pointed out. “California’s mandate will have a significant impact on our operations and overall annual business. We’re currently installing just under 50% of new roofs in California. Of all of those houses, we install solar on around 10 percent. That will be 100% come January 2020,” Liardon said.

The emergence of an entirely new solar market realm

Furthermore, bifacial modules will be “a much more viable play” for single-family homes, as well as multi-family housing and C&I projects, according to Liardon. “There’s an entirely different need emerging in California, particularly within the residential realm.” “These [bifacial] panels are particularly advantageous for small rooftops and high-density areas and that’s going to change the game and open up markets from a solar energy productivity standpoint,” he said. Liardon said bifacial PV panels’ market share in California could surge from 1–2% to the double digits, as high as 15–20%, over the next 12 months. “It doesn’t take long for demand [for particular technologies] to shift and market shares to change quickly,” he said. “We think there’s going to be a significant bump higher over the next 12 months depending on the pace [manufacturing] capacity ramps up, but bifacial panel market share could approach 20% within a year. A large part of that is connected to California’s mandate and limited rooftop and land availability.” Annual new single-family home starts in California are in the 80,000–90,000 range at present. Some 12,000–15,000 are outfitted with solar energy systems, Liardon pointed out.

There are around 140,000 single-family home solar systems installed in California right now, either retrofit or new home installations. The [solar homes] mandate applies to new construction, so the number of single-family residential solar installs in California is going to jump from 140,000–150,000 up to 240,000–250,000 starting in 2020.

“Obviously, the impacts of this mandate, or tariffs of any kind, make for a difficult challenge for all—builders, owners, project developers, equipment suppliers, etc.—particularly given limited rooftop space in high-density markets. There are lots of areas where [property] lots are small and rooftop space is limited, which is going to make it difficult to install solar. That’s why this exemption for high-efficiency, bifacial solar modules is such a big win,” Liardon concluded.

How California’s New Solar Mandate Will Affect Homeowners

In 2018, the California Building Standards Commission approved a mandate requiring all new homes under three stories in the state of California to install solar panels. This solar roof mandate, which is the first of its kind in the United States, will go into effect on January 1, 2020 . While this new mandate enables groundbreaking advancement of clean energy, incentivizes energy storage, and promotes a variety of home energy efficiency upgrades that will collectively reduce energy use in new homes by more than 50 percent, there are various solar system requirements, flexibility measures, deployment and financing options, costs, building process provisions, maintenance responsibilities, and energy savings estimates within the updated building code that California homeowners should be aware of and understand.

System requirements

California’s solar roof mandate is applicable to new residential buildings three stories tall and under and states that the solar PV system must be large enough to net out the annual energy usage of the home in kilowatt-hours. This means that, depending on their location within the state and their house’s energy efficiency, the average California homeowner should expect their solar energy system to be sized between approximately 2.7 and 5.7 kilowatts. In addition to solar, the mandate encourages but does not currently require the deployment of technologies such as battery storage and heat pump water heaters in newly built homes.

Flexibility measures

A number of flexibility measures are included in California’s solar roof mandate, including the option for builders to deploy community solar rather than rooftop solar for new homes so long as they receive approval from the California Energy Commission and coordinate with the local utility. Although pursuing community solar for large-scale projects reduces labor costs for builders, it may not be the most beneficial option for homeowners from a cost perspective; currently, California’s regulations prevent homeowners from taking advantage of net metering while in a community solar arrangement. Another flexibility measure built into the code allows potential exemptions from the mandate for homes where electricity rates are lower than the cost of solar power or where the roof cannot sustain solar panels due to shading or other reasons.

Solar deployment and financing

Under the mandate, home builders have options in terms of how they go about outfitting each new house with solar. As mentioned above, builders do have the ability to pursue community solar rather than rooftop solar for residential buildings. However, builders who choose to go the rooftop route have multiple courses of action that they may take within that sector as well. One option is for builders to request bids from and outsource projects to general contractors and solar companies such as SunPower. Under this scenario, the builder could either allow the project to be rolled into the overall price of the home and paid for through the mortgage or permit homeowners to pay for the system upfront in cash, obtain a loan to pay for the system, or sign into a lease. Another option is for builders to bring the solar process in-house and create their own solar division within the company. Financing options for homeowners would likely be similar to those available for outsourced projects.