The top solar states in the U.S. have about 2,000 non-residential projects in their pipelines that could go online in 2014 or beyond.

That's about 40 gigawatts (GW) of photovoltaic (PV) capacity capacity, according to PVTech. 

"Project pipelines provide significant insight into individual projects, but also help understand market structures, business models and future demand levels," said Michael Barker, an analyst with NPD.

California has a dominating 60 percent of that capacity, according to data from NPD Solarbuzz, which released a study this week on the record year that 2013 was for the U.S. solar industry. California would have been ranked the fourth PV market in the world if it had been individually assessed.

Solar projects yet to be completed, for the top 10 U.S. states, based on total pipeline capacity. Graphic credit: NPD Solarbuzz

Barker believes states with the largest pipelines are set to have strong solar markets for years, while those that aren't ranked may falter off as their current pipelines become depleted.

The top 10 U.S. states in 2013 demand and their non-residential pipeline rankings. Graphic credit: NPD Solarbuzz

"Regardless of where individual states rank, in terms of market or pipeline size, the US market offers tremendous long-term growth opportunities," Barker wrote. "Any PV company (manufacturer, installer or developer) that wants to participate on a global level clearly needs to have a strategy for the U.S. market.

"It is essential to understand the size of state markets today and also the strength of the project pipelines driving PV demand going forward."

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