Community renewables in the United States

Community renewables projects, or “shared renewables”, in the United States follow a community ownership structure to increase access to electricity generated from renewable energy systems. Under the model, customers can buy or subscribe to a portion of a shared project or its renewable generation. The model has proven especially attractive to customers that have limited on-site potential for renewables, including renters or others without means to install renewable energy generators on their homes or businesses. In particular, community solar has proven popular, with 3.4 GW of total installed capacity as of mid-2021. A 2015 study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory found that more than half of Americans that want to install rooftop solar systems are not able to do so on their own. A number of states across the country have enacted legislation enabling shared renewables and several others are considering it.

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