Puerto Rico is in the dark again, but solar companies see glimmers of hope
23 Sep 2022
Much of Puerto Rico is still without power after Hurricane Fiona battered the island on Sept. 19. The storm laid bare how vulnerable the territory's power system still is five years after Hurricane Maria plunged it into an 11-month blackout — the longest in American history — and led to the deaths of almost 3,000 people. Yet, some see hope.
Over the past five years, around 50,000 solar and battery power systems have been installed on homes in Puerto Rico, says Chris Rauscher, senior director of public policy at Sunrun, the biggest residential solar company in the United States. And almost all that equipment appears to have continued supplying electricity while the island's central power system went dark, according to market participants and industry observers.
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