Solar energy is big business, a recent editorial in the Canberra Times states. Recent figures from Bloomberg New Energy Finance show that global investment in renewable power is expected to reach nearly $US400 billion annually by 2020. This is double the level from 2010. Solar energy development, offshore wind projects, and solar panelling on both residential and business rooftops, and solar 'farms', are thought to be the top investment priorities.
Yet the solar energy industry can look discouraging to some at the moment. Companies all over the world are producing a huge excess in solar panels and cells; more than there is a demand for. Yet, ironically, demand is rising due to the decreasing price of solar panels. This rising demand just hasn't caught up with the oversupply yet.
China is now the world's top solar panel producer, causing many solar power firms throughout the USA and Europe to close or go bankrupt. In just the last few years, China's share of the global solar energy output has risen from 6 per cent to a whopping 60 per cent. Even Australia's only solar panel maker, SilexSolar, stopped manufacturing temporarily in November 2011, declaring the culprits to be the high dollar, a lack of support from state and federal governments, and the rise in Chinese imports. And China's looking to stay on top for a while, with the country expected to spend $US50billion each year on projects by 2014. The USA is not expected to catch up with Chinese spending before 2020 – if even by then.
Why the power struggle? Countries want 'in' on the renewable energy industry, the article states, due to its 'high-technology content, clean operations, and capacity to create new jobs'. And although solar energy generates less than one per cent of US electricity, it is still on the increase - the amount of new solar energy wattage installed in the US has been increasing by more than 70 per cent per year since 2008. And with falling solar panel prices, there is sure to be an even bigger increase in solar energy installation. But the question is, is this enough to keep the surviving solar energy companies afloat in the coming few years?
