Friday, October 02, 2009 at 2:21:43 PM - by Danny Vo

The solar energy industry in California got a significant boost this week in the form of an announcement from a prominent utility.

According to Pacific Gas and Electric, it plans to buy 2,000 megawatts of clean power in the coming years, helping to serve about 15 million customers, mostly in northern and central California, in the process.

Of that total, about 830 megawatts of energy will be generated from solar power producers, potentially serving more than 200,000 typical homes. To complement its planned purchase of wind and solar energy, the company has also requested approval for substantial new investments in efficient natural gas energy.

"Taken together, these agreements reflect PG&E’s comprehensive energy strategy to meet our customers’ future power needs with clean energy solutions,” said Fong Wan of PG&E.

As utilities continue making investments in solar energy, a growing number of homeowners are doing the same with help from federal and state tax incentives, as well as photovoltaic panel prices that have fallen as much as 30 percent over the past year.