Where are the Gaps in the Solar Marketplace?
92% of people think we need to develop and use solar power, but less than 1% of US power is from solar. Where are the gaps?
I can identify three main ones, but they seem to be getting addressed more and more by a wide variety of parties — public, private and non-governmental. So, what is left?
- » See also: World’s First Osmotic Power Plant Opens
- » Get CleanTechnica by RSS or sign up by email.
Recently, a study by Kelton Research showed that most people think solar is the most important energy source the government should fund and most think they will get solar within the next five years. Nonetheless, only about 3% of those respondents had solar power and less than 1% of the power in the entire US is from solar.
Why the huge gap? And who is trying to fill it?
Major factors seem to be: 1) cost, 2) lack of information, and 3) just the effort it takes to switch from one power source to another.
The most important factor is the cost of solar component cost. Silicon manufacturing cost should be $20 to $25/Kg. The cell technology will have more room to improve conversion efficiency for reducing cost. When the cell technolgy become more mature, solar component cost can reach grid parity to conventional electricity. According to PVinsights, http://www.pvinsights.com , solar panel price is still around $1.9 to $2.1 and still have some difference from conventional electricity.