The 2026 SolarGrade PV Health Report analyzes nearly 8 GW of solar assets and debuts the HelioVolta Quality Standard Awards, honoring Onyx Renewables and Greenskies Clean Energy
CARLSBAD, Calif. , Oct. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- HelioVolta, an independent provider of field inspections and technical services for solar and energy storage projects, today published its fourth annual SolarGrade PV Health Report, assessing quality and workmanship across 1,500-plus solar assets in the U.S. and Puerto Rico that were inspected by HelioVolta's field engineers.
The report's key findings include:
- Quality issues can raise a PV system's levelized cost of energy (LCOE) by more than 20%, driven by lost production and higher operational costs.
- The lowest-quality systems underperform by an estimated 6% over their lifetimes and require up to three times more unplanned maintenance than the highest-quality systems.
- 87% of projects contained major issues requiring urgent corrective action, while 8% had critical issues requiring immediate de-energization.
- Tracker systems had the highest rate of critical issues of any system type (18%), driven largely by connector and wire management failures.
This year's report is built on the revamped HelioVolta Quality Standard® (HQS®), a proprietary rubric that starts every project at 1,000 points and deducts points based on the number, severity, and remediation status of quality issues documented by HelioVolta. Scores translate to an A–F letter-grade that the report ties directly to lifetime energy costs.
"Quality in solar is no longer a matter of opinion; it's a number you can put in a contract," commented David Penalva, co-founder and CEO of HelioVolta. "This year's report proves that excellent workmanship is empirical, not subjective, and the projects from Onyx Renewables and Greenskies Clean Energy show exactly what quality looks like."
"Our modeling reveals that the gap between an A-rated and an F-rated PV system can raise the levelized cost of energy by more than 20%," noted James Nagel, co-founder and CTO of HelioVolta. "That's the difference between a profitable asset and one stranded by expiring tax credits. Asset owners who tolerate aggressive EPC cost-cutting can no longer operate profitable portfolios."
For the first time, the report also recognizes excellence through the inaugural HelioVolta Quality Standard Awards, honoring the two highest-scoring projects under 5 MWDC inspected in 2025:
- A 1.15 MWDC ground mount array for a California homeowners association that was developed and owned by Onyx Renewables and built by Helix Electric.
- A 760 kWDC rooftop array for a Fortune 100 retailer that was developed and owned by Greenskies Clean Energy and built by Opulent Power Solutions.
"Not all energy is delivered equal. Our customers need solar that is engineered, inspected, and validated to perform," said Angie Daoud, COO of Onyx Renewables. "We build accountability into every step of how we develop, build, and care for our projects, and this independent award recognizes and confirms that this approach delivers."
"This recognition from HelioVolta is meaningful because it independently validates the standards we work to uphold across our portfolio," said Vijay Singh, CEO of Greenskies Clean Energy. "As a long-term owner and operator, we know the quality of how a project is built directly supports how it performs over time. That focus on disciplined execution and lasting performance guides every project we deliver."
This year's report also breaks down quality trends by PV system type. Canopy systems, which represent just 3% of all systems inspected by HelioVolta, have the lowest issue rates. HelioVolta has never found a critical issue in a canopy system, and just 59% contained major issues.
To learn more about the HelioVolta Quality Standard® and explore profiles of this year's award-winning projects, download the 2026 SolarGrade PV Health Report at www.heliovolta.com/resources/pv-health-report-2026/.
About HelioVolta
HelioVolta provides independent technical services that ensure renewable energy assets perform safely and reliably today — and for decades to come. We help asset owners, managers, and off-takers build actionable quality programs with robust EPC and O&M standards, comprehensive field inspections, and data-driven benchmarking of partners and vendors. Every HelioVolta field inspection is conducted with SolarGrade, a field operations software platform developed by our affiliate, SolarGrade, Inc. Learn more at www.heliovolta.com.
Media Contact
Tori Clifford
Head of Marketing
+1 (301) 717-6706
Media Contact
Tori Clifford, HelioVolta, 1 3017176796, [email protected], HelioVolta
SOURCE HelioVolta
Share this article