On the Uprise Solar website, we say we install Tier 1 solar panels. Tier 1 sounds fantastic! But what exactly does that mean? What are solar panel tiers?
Which Solar Panels Are Good Financial Investments?
BloombergNEF developed the solar panel tier ranking system to rank companies that manufacture solar panels. They define Tier 1 this way: “Tier 1 module manufacturers are those which have provided own-brand, own-manufacture products to at least six different projects, which have been financed non-recourse by six different commercial (ie not development, not export-import) banks, in the past two years.”
Okay. What’s all that mean? First, their criteria is based primarily on bankability, which they define as “whether projects using the solar products are likely to be offered non-recourse debt financing by banks.”
Defining non-recourse debt helps provide some clarity. Recourse debt means the borrower is personally liable; banks can come after them to get what they’re owed. Meanwhile, non-recourse debt means the borrower isn’t personally liable; banks can’t take further legal action after taking collateral for a loan. Non-recourse debt is riskier for a bank.
So to sum it up, if a bank takes a look at a solar project, considering what kind of panels the project uses, will they be willing to offer riskier debt?
Other Criteria In The Rankings For Solar Panel Tiers
The solar projects described above are large-scale projects, with over 10 megawatts of capacity. Think large solar farms rather than small residential rooftop arrays (which are typically around eight kilowatts or so).
In addition, Tier 1 companies must own their own production facilities, and sell solar panels under their own brands. They can’t outsource production. BloombergNEF also says Tier 1 companies are transparent, with good data availability. They review companies every quarter.
If a solar module manufacturer is ranked as Tier 1, that shows a level of industry acceptance for the company. Solar panel manufacturer ZNShine puts it this way: “If projects using XYZ modules have consistently been approved for financing, then Company XYZ will likely be a tier 1 supplier.”
ZNShine, Hyundai, and Hanwha Q-Cells are just a few examples of companies that have made the Tier 1 list.
While Tier 1 solar companies manufacture panels for those larger projects, they also sell to smaller solar companies like Uprise for residential projects. That’s how we can say we use Tier 1 solar panels!
In a nutshell, solar panel tiers are a financial classification. But we think setting that standard helped raise the bar for solar panel manufacturers.
What Does Tier 2 Mean?
There is no official Tier 2, or Tier 3, etc. BloombergNEF doesn’t rank manufacturers in Tier 2 or Tier 3, only in Tier 1. However, some in the solar industry do use the descriptor ‘Tier 2’ to refer to manufacturers that aren’t Tier 1.
What Solar Panels Does Uprise Offer?
Uprise has nearly 100 options of Tier 1 panels today! The exact brand we install changes based on manufacturer availability; however, we always install Tier 1 solar panels. And there are so many excellent options out there.
We install black panels with a 25-year warranty (although they’ll likely generate power after those 25 years, just with less efficiency), and the panels are typically bifacial, which means they absorb sunlight from the front and back of the panel. They’ll catch direct sunlight from above, but also light reflected off your roof. You can learn more about what’s inside solar panels in our blog post here.
What’s Even More Crucial Than Panels For A Solar Installation
While we obviously think solar panels are cool, we think other components of your solar installation are even more important than the panels themselves. Case in point: microinverters.
Each one of the panels plugs into its own microinverter (affectionately called ‘micros’), which do the work of transforming the direct current electricity from the panels into alternating current electricity usable in your home. Plus, the micros help us monitor your solar array, letting us know when there’s an issue with a panel. Unlike old school solar arrays which were all connected with string inverters, when one panel goes down when micros are involved, it doesn’t knock out the whole array. And the panel’s microinverter lets us know there’s an issue.
Also more important than panels? The team who installed them! Call us a tad biased, but we think it’s a smart choice to go with a local company, who will treat you like a neighbor instead of a number. Here’s our blog post about why we think it makes sense to go local for your solar installation.
Plus, you want a team who will be there to provide maintenance for years down the road after install day. Local companies typically offer better customer service, during the process and beyond.
I’m Ready To Go Solar!
Now’s the time to go solar in Washington, DC! If you have questions about the solar panels or other equipment, or want to kick off your solar process, just reach out to our team here or call us at (202) 750-5718 . We’d love to partner with you on your solar journey.