Deregulated energy markets accelerate solar adoption

TL;DR: Solar power has become the cheapest source of new electricity generation in many parts of the U.S., but adoption depends heavily on market structure. Deregulated markets, where entrepreneurs and independent power producers can directly pursue profitable opportunities, have rapidly embraced solar, while regulated utilities remain slow to change due to legacy investments and bureaucratic oversight. To accelerate the shift to renewables and a cost competitive future, the U.S. should pursue greater deregulation, enabling private capital to build a cleaner, larger-capacity grid. This is essential to meet rising energy demand from emerging technologies and to ensure American competitiveness on the global stage. The Emergence of Cost-Competitive Solar Solar power was once a niche technology. In the 1990s, module prices hovered around $5–6 per watt, making solar prohibitively expensive for mainstream use. By the mid-2000s, costs had dropped to about $3 per watt - still steep for most ... Read full article.