According to a recent survey conducted by SolarReviews, the US solar industry has experienced worsening supply chain issues in 2022. Of the 450 respondents polled from across the industry, 67% said that supply chain issues had either worsened or remained the same compared to the previous year. In response, 42% of those surveyed said that their companies had purchased more domestically-produced materials and products.
These supply chain issues have been well-documented, with the Customs and Border Protection Agency reporting that 2GW worth of PV modules were held at US borders in 2022 due to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. Recent attempts by members of the House of Representatives to retract Joe Biden's waiver on import tariffs could exacerbate procurement issues for US companies next year.
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Despite these challenges, the survey found that 62% of respondents expect to expand their businesses in 2023 due to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) investment and production tax credits. However, 70% of respondents reported that increased operational costs were the most noticeable effect of inflation on the solar industry. On the other hand, 66% noted that high electricity prices had increased demand for solar energy.
The survey also revealed that the shortage of skilled workers remains a significant challenge for the industry, with 63% of respondents saying that the IRA bill would not make it easier to solve this problem. The lack of skilled labor, decreased desire to work in the industry, and higher wage expectations were cited as the main weaknesses of the potential workforce.
In terms of module suppliers, 83% of installers surveyed reported using more than one supplier. Qcells was the most popular, used by 66% of respondents, followed by REC, Canadian Solar, Silfab, and Jinko. More than half of the survey respondents were residential or small commercial solar installation companies, with just 4.3% being utility-scale deployers and 5.9% operations and maintenance companies.
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Despite the challenges facing the industry, the IRA has the potential to boost the solar manufacturing workforce to 115,000 by 2030, according to a report from the Solar Energy Industries Association. It remains to be seen how the industry will adapt and overcome the challenges it faces, but the survey suggests that there is cause for both concern and optimism in the year ahead.
