TABJ - June 2 - The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) SunShot Initiative has seen a lot of coverage lately, including a pledge of US$27 million to combat what is referred to as ‘soft’ costs in the industry.

It is reported that up to 40 per cent of project costs come under this umbrella—including permitting, sourcing sites and installing technologies for facilities—and funds allocated are intended for both the small scale residential and developer/larger scale building industry efforts.

Of the total, $12.5 million will go towards improving rooftop and small scale commercial power generation, including better-defining permitting processes, and $15 million will be used to make IT and building setups more efficient and well-placed for future installations.

“These investments under the SunShot program can help to transform the solar energy industry by addressing significant challenges to solar energy deployment, including permitting and installation,” US Energy Secretary Steven Chu told press.

“Innovations in IT and local business processes, such as online permit applications, can deliver significant savings for solar energy systems.”

However, speculation still continues over whether SunShot’s goals to reduce the cost of solar facilities by 70 per cent in 10 years are really viable. Since plans for this funding were originally announced tentatively in February, concerns have been continually voiced.