Innovation born from adversity

By Jenny Yu.  

Explore how the solar market continues to evolve and expand in a time of regulatory challenges. 

Solar market dynamics continue to evolve as technology advances and policy shifts reshape the landscape. In this Roofing Road Trips® episode, Heidi J. Ellsworth spoke with Mark Gies, director of strategy and market development at S-5!, about emerging opportunities in solar.  

“One of the growing sectors has been community solar,” Mark stated. While environmental policies have been cut at the federal level, Mark foresees multiple parties motivated to fill the gaps. “One thing that I think is going to happen is that states and local areas may pick up the slack that the federal level is dropping. That may restore balance.” 

Energy storage is another major growth factor in the solar sector. “Batteries are really another thing that's driving growth, because people are now coupling more and more storage with solar so that you can make electricity during the day, store it and then use it at night when the sun's not there,” Mark shared. “That way, you can use more of what you make, which is better towards this distributed generation, where people are using it themselves and the grid is not so stressed.” 

In this time of environmental and economic uncertainty, Mark advises that companies prioritize a strategic mindset: “People should look at their business and say, ‘What's my best strategy to grow and survive in this environment?’” 

While policies and regulations may pose challenges for solar, Mark remains optimistic about the opportunities ahead. “Adversity drives more innovation,” Mark said. “A big thing with solar is the permitting process going through regulations. People are working on that, and the hurdles will go down. Despite what the environment is like, I think it will still work and grow. I'm confident.” 

Read the previous article in this series or Listen to the podcast to learn more about how current trends are shaping solar.