U.S. utilities face up to $48B revenue loss from solar, efficiency

Energy demand could drop by more than 15% due to new energy technologies by 2025

Energy utilities face losing between $18 billion and $48 billion a year in the U.S and up to €61 billion a year in Europe by 2025 as solar power and energy conservation initiatives grow, according to Accenture.
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The Accenture analysis, based on extensive modeling and a survey of global utilities executives, estimates that energy demand could be reduced by more than 15% due to new energy technologies by 2025.


For example, researchers at the Australian Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics at the University of New South Wales announced that they've achieved 40.4% efficiency in converting sunlight to electricity by using commercially available solar cells combined with a mirror and filters that reduce wasted energy.

The average conversion ratio for solar cells is around 16% to 18%, according to Amit Ronen, director of George Washington University's Solar Institute in Washington. The best solar cells are able to convert as much as 20% of the sunlight they absorb into electricity, he added.


http://www.computerworld.com/article/2857672/us-utilities-face-up-to-48b-revenue-loss-from-solar-efficiency.html