October 17, 2023
Taking place in Las Vegas, the annual RE+ convention was held on September 11th through the 14th. It made a major splash, with attendance topping over 40,000 – almost 50% higher than the previous year.
The event’s popularity was certainly warranted, as it offered a bounty of interesting exhibits, learning sessions, panels, and presentations. Many shared noteworthy insights on the future of the solar market.
Innovative Solar Technologies
A number of manufacturers debuted their new products at RE+. European manufacturer, Recom Technologies, showcased its advanced solar panels and introduced a split-phase hybrid inverter/ESS as a flexible home backup solution specifically for the U.S. market. Products like the half-cut bifacial Panther and the shingled Puma were on display, emphasizing the diversity in solar panel lines.
The convention featured enlightening conversations and displays of innovative products like the EP Cube Lite by Canadian Solar and the EverVolt Home Battery System by Panasonic. Companies like Bila Solar introduced lightweight, glassless, frameless silicon solar panels ideal for commercial rooftops.
U.S. Manufacturing
American-made solar was a major topic for this year’s event. Day 1 of the convention highlighted plans by solar panel manufacturers for U.S. factories and the integration of TOPCon technology in solar panels. Companies like Canadian Solar and Bluetti displayed innovative energy storage systems, with Bluetti seeking to expand its network of installers in the United States for its new systems.
Veteran domestic panel manufacturers like Silfab Solar and Mission Solar committed to TOPCon production in the United States. Both companies announced new solar panels using TOPCon technology, designed for commercial and residential markets. Large-scale energy storage manufacturers like ESS Inc. and Powin are scaling production to meet increased demand, focusing on domestic content and manufacturing.
Several companies announced plans for U.S. manufacturing of inverters, with SolarEdge starting contract manufacturing operations in Austin, Texas. Enphase has all three of its U.S. contract manufacturing partners operational, and Power Electronics is set to start its own factory in Houston, Texas.
This emphasis on domestic manufacturing was celebrated with the American-Made contest, featuring live demonstrations of home-grown tech. Funded by the U.S. DOE, with support from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), two $500,000 prizes were issued to ReJoule’s Second-Life Solar Team and Latimer Controls.
Noteworthy Speakers and Exhibits
Several speakers provided insights into the future trends in solar and clean energy, as well as solutions for success.
In the convention’s opening session, top industry funding leaders discussed obstacles to financing clean energy projects, and what strategies are paying off in the quest to launch net-zero projects.
Chris Seiple, Vice Chairman of Power and Renewables at Wood Mackenzie, shared insights on the future of renewable energy in the U.S. He stated that the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is poised to make renewable energy very competitive, potentially tripling the annual renewable energy capacity additions to 110 GW in the next decade. Despite the initial slowdowns due to the complexity of implementing the IRA, the long-term projection for renewables is strong. However, challenges such as interconnection queues will create hurdles.
A presentation by University of Alaska Fairbanks and Western Colorado University also tackled the issue of reusing discarded solar panels to help meet energy needs of lower-income households. Their talk discussed how installers and utility managers can benefit from participating in social equity programs.
As part of its new “Spotlight Country” feature, hundreds of representatives of Canada’s solar industry came to showcase their developments and talk about their country’s progress toward sustainability. This served as a major point of inspiration throughout the conference.
Resources for a Growing Business: Exclusive Pre-set Solar Appointments
The RE+ Convention September 2023 was a pivotal event, illuminating the path forward in clean energy and solar technology innovations. It provided a platform for discussions and introductions of advanced technologies, manufacturing plans, and integrated systems, focusing on the needs and demands of both power consumers and solar installers.
The highlighted sessions and speakers offered a wealth of knowledge and insights into the evolving landscape of solar technology and energy storage systems, emphasizing the importance of staying abreast of the latest trends and developments in the field.
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