The sun shines on the solar industry’s quest for ‘grid parity’

The sun shines on the solar industry’s quest for ‘grid parity’

By Peter Marsh

Published: January 10 2008 20:21 | Last updated: January 10 2008 20:21

An army of construction workers in a wind-swept plant in northern Michigan is testimony to the swirl of activity taking place in the global solar power industry.

The factory produces silicon for solar cells and is owned by Hemlock Semiconductor, a US company that is the world’s biggest producer of the material. All the silicon Hemlock produces until 2012 is already sold out, with production due to quadruple over the next five years.

Solar is one of a number of renewable energy forms, including wind power and biofuels, that are in the spotlight as a result of efforts to curb carbon dioxide emissions and reduce reliance on oil. Amid a wave of enthusiasm for nuclear energy as a means of combating global warming – illustrated on Thursday by the UK government’s decision to give the go-ahead for a new series of nuclear power stations – advocates of solar are keen to point to what they see as their sector’s inherent advantages, particularly in relation to waste disposal.

While solar is still comparatively expensive, there is potential for technological changes to transform the economics, according to Stow Walker, associate director of global power at Cambridge Energy Research Associates, a US consultancy. He adds that the global supply chains will contribute to cost-reduction, as has happened in many other areas of manufacturing in the past 20 years.

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