Overcoming the Top 4 Obstacles to Hitting Your Sustainability Goals

Governments, companies, and utilities are all trying to become more sustainable. This means they are trying to use less energy from things that hurt the environment. People have been asking for this for a long time and it is finally happening. Many big companies have set goals to be completely clean, meaning they will get all their energy from things that do not hurt the environment. Some companies that make fossil fuels (like British Petroleum and Shell) also have these goals.

The demand for renewable energy is growing quickly all over the world. In 2020, the amount of renewable energy capacity that was added was 45% more than in the previous year. This was despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The sector is seeing a lot of growth right now, and this trend is likely to continue throughout the 2020s. This is an important decade for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and solar energy will be a critical part of our success in this race. The solar energy industry is healthy and growing rapidly right now.

Many companies are struggling to reduce emissions on schedule. There are four main obstacles that need to be addressed in order for solar projects to be completed on time. If these issues are not dealt with, critical projects will be delayed, and this will have negative consequences for sustainability managers who will not reach their goals. In addition, missed commitments mean that an organization's reputation is at stake.

If a business wants to succeed with solar energy, they need a strong development partner. This is especially true if they are trying to overcome industry obstacles. I will explore the major hurdles facing solar project development, as well as what corporate buyers should look for in a development partner to overcome them.

#1. PV module supply chain issues

The solar industry is experiencing some supply chain issues. A shortage of PV panels is stalling solar power plant installations. Unfortunately, many issues plague tier 1 solar panel manufacturers: glass, aluminum, silicon shortages, and shipping bottlenecks.

One issue upstream can cause cascading impacts downstream, delaying projects. Developing a good relationship with a solar module supplier is key to project success. Understanding shipping and customs control delays is vital to completing PV projects. Proactive acquisition of solar panels ahead of time is necessary for many developers.

#2. Congested interconnection queues with protracted build-out schedules

Unfortunately, connecting projects to the power grid is often inefficient and time-consuming. This is a challenge that is faced by many people who want to deploy energy projects. Unfortunately, the number of people requesting to connect their project to the grid has increased, which is causing gridlock and delaying deployment.

The location of a solar project is very important. You need to consider where the project will connect to the grid. If you don't, your project won't work. You also need to do a lot of research about the point of interconnection. This is where the project will connect to the grid. You also need to have relationships with the utilities where your projects will connect. It can be hard to get your project approved if you don't have these relationships.

Carrying out a comprehensive analysis can help you avoid any fatal flaws further down the line.

#3. Solar developers unable to raise debt or tax equity

Project financing is important for developing solar projects. Often, tax equity investors help finance solar facilities. This is when someone who has to pay taxes helps someone else with a project that has tax benefits. Raising debt also relies on strong relationships in the financial industry. Without debt or tax equity, solar photovoltaic projects can't move forward.

It is very important to use a solar developer who has strong relationships with banks and other financial institutions. Companies with a lot of money provide security for buyers. This financial stability provides a safe solution for sustainability managers.

#4. Poor financial returns due to project underperformance

Many renewable energy developers do not want to own and operate their projects. Energy buyers may have solar power plants that look great on paper, but the non-operating developer has little connection to the operating project. This can lead to under designed and poorly managed solar facilities. This leads to projects that underproduce and do not realize their projected financial returns.

To get optimal performance from a solar project, you need to make sure the procurement and design process is done well. This means picking the right equipment and designing the project correctly. After the design is complete, it's important to have a good team running the project so it operates well. If an Independent Power Producer isn't reliable, the project won't reach its full potential. And if a project underperforms, the financial returns will be lower than they could be.

Conclusion

Corporations that have sustainability goals have a lot to lose if they don't meet their goals. They can get into trouble if they don't make sure that their stakeholders are happy. Achieving ambitious goals takes a lot of work and the right team. If you partner with an unreliable solar developer, your results will be poor. You need to partner with others to achieve your sustainability goals.

Solar companies need to take steps to make sure they have the essential equipment for their projects. They also need to understand the research process so that their projects are of high quality. In order to finance their projects, they need to be able to raise money. Additionally, they need to perform a deep system design analysis and have a strong operations & maintenance plan in place so that their solar facility is running at its best performance.

Solar companies need to have the essential equipment for their projects. They also need to understand the research process so that their projects are of high quality. In order to finance their projects, they need to be able to raise money. Additionally, they need to perform a deep system design analysis and have a strong operations & maintenance plan in place so that their solar facility is running at its best performance.

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