Tesla loses top spot, Sunrun becomes biggest US residential solar installer

Tesla installed 87 megawatts of commercial and residential solar in Q4 while rival Sunrun added 85 in the same period

Elon Musk is no longer leading the charge in residential solar. Tesla installed 87 megawatts of commercial and residential solar in the fourth quarter, including about 50 megawatts at homes, according to a GTM Research estimate. Rival Sunrun added 85 megawatts of residential systems in the same period, according to a statement Tuesday. Counting only that part of Tesla’s operation, Sunrun took the lead in the third quarter.

The changing of the guard comes more than a year after Tesla bought Musk’s debt-burdened SolarCity for $2 billion. Tesla has since prioritised profitability in solar over growth-at-all-costs as the company seeks