How will the eclipse impact solar panels?

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — In case you didn’t know, a solar eclipse is coming to parts of the U.S. on Monday. The moon will block out the sun for several minutes during the event.

But what will happen to solar panels during the time when there is no sunlight? Will those who rely on it cease to have power? Luckily for Michiganders, Consumers Energy has a plan for that.

“We’re telling people that even if the solar production falls off a little bit, we still have other forms of energy — wind, natural gas, for example — that will still make sure we meet the needs of our homes and businesses across the state,” Brian Wheeler, spokesperson for Consumers Energy, said.

Wheeler did say there may be some interruption during the eclipse as we would normally see during the night, but customers will still have power thanks to the other sources of energy the utility company employs.

“There’s always a balance that goes into how we provide electricity to people today,” he said. “Renewable energy, so that’s wind and solar together are around 15% of the power that you get day in day out … We have natural gas plants, a couple of them in Zeeland and Jackson. And then again really going forward, there’s going to be a lot more development of solar to fill the mix.”

Consumers is also working toward developing more battery storage in the next few years where the energy generated from solar panels can be collected and saved for later use. One of the three solar plants that Consumers operates already has battery storage capabilities in Cadillac.

There are also plans to increase the amount of solar power generated by Consumers Energy. A new center was just announced for Muskegon and is set to begin operation in 2026. The utility company said it hopes to generate an additional 8,000 megawatts of solar energy by 2040.

So while there may be some slight interruptions on April 8, Consumers Energy customers should not worry about any major loss of power and can enjoy the eclipse in its entirety.