Third-party ownership dominated the U.S. commercial and community solar market, reaching 72% a share in 2024, a Wood Mackenzie report found.
Third-party ownership of non-residential solar projects in the United States increased to a 72% market share in 2024, according to Wood Mackenzie’s U.S. commercial solar competitive landscape 2025 report.
Wood Mackenzie said it expects that third-party ownership will continue to lead commercial and community solar financing with a 74% market share by 2026 before falling to 62% by 2029.
Nexamp held the largest third-party ownership market share in 2024 at 7%, Wood Mackenzie said, followed by Summit Ridge Energy at 6.5% and Standard Solar at 5.3%.
“The maturation of the tax credit transferability market is driving growth in third-party ownership,” said Amanda Colombo, a research associate at Wood Mackenzie. “Transferable tax credits offer less complex, cheaper, and more flexible monetization options for [third-party ownership] projects. Small and medium-scale project developers report that transferability has simplified third-party financing.”
The overall U.S. commercial solar market set a new annual record in 2024, with 2.1 GWdc of new capacity installed nationwide, Wood Mackenzie said. California, Maine and Illinois were key drivers in the 8% year-over-year growth.
Over 11 GWdc of new commercial solar capacity will be added in the United States over the next five years, Wood Mackenzie forecast. Key drivers of installation growth will include rising electricity prices, growth in emerging markets and continued momentum from the Inflation Reduction Act.
“Emerging solar state markets across the country are experiencing a surge in installations, driven by favorable factors such as low development costs, untapped solar potential, and abundant available land,” Colombo said. “Notably, less established markets in the Midwest and Southeast regions are witnessing significant growth in commercial solar deployments.”
