Expect Production Declines In North Sea, U.S. Shale

Friday, March 4, 2016

In the latest edition of the Numbers Report, we’ll take a look at some of the most interesting figures put out this week in the energy sector. Each week we’ll dig into some data and provide a bit of explanation on what drives the numbers.

Let’s take a look.

1. Solar breakout year

(Click to enlarge)

– 2016 is poised to be another record year for solar. Of the expected 26 gigawatts of new electric capacity added this year, large-scale solar arrays will capture 9.5 GW, the most out of any other source. – Moreover, that only accounts for utility-scale solar projects, and doesn’t include rooftop solar, which is also growing quickly. SEIA, the solar industry’s trade group, believes an additional 4 GW of residential and commercial solar will come online, bringing the 2016 total to 15 GW of new solar, or about double the capacity added in 2015.- 2016 will be the first year that solar grabs the top spot for new sources of electricity generation.- The preponderance of large solar projects, particularly grouped towards the end of the year, is heavily influenced by what were once expiring tax credits – incentives that were extended through the end of the decade as part of a budget deal the U.S. Congress passed in late 2015.- Separately, an estimate from Bloomberg New Energy Finance predicts that around 100 million households will have solar by 2020. Off-grid solar will become…