The solar industry is booming across the U.S. and the numbers are staggering. Residential solar installations in 2012 reached 488 megawatts – a 62 percent increase over 2011 installations. And according to GTM Research, a solar photovoltaic (PV) system is now installed every four minutes in the U.S.

As rooftop solar and other distributed energy resources have begun to take off across the country, utility companies are becoming increasingly concerned about this ‘existential threat to their business.