There was a decline in the month-on-month module shipments in the US in the first two months of the year, according to the latest estimates by the US Energy Information Administration.

Somik Das, Power Analyst at GlobalData, comments:“The drop in photovoltaic (PV) shipments is a result of developers and customers overstocking modules in December 2019 to take maximum benefit of the solar Investment Tax credit (ITC).

“Although there was a decline in shipments in the first two months, they are still way higher than the average shipments during Aug-Nov 2019. This shows that developers are stockpiling modules in anticipation of supply chain glut thereby contributing to the increase in module prices.

“Installers would also like to secure higher tax credit by beginning their projects by the end of 2020. It is anticipated that COVID-19 will contribute to a further increase in the prices of modules due to supply chain disruptions and stay home orders.”